Knottingley Sports Centre to be demolished
Preliminary works
have started on site this week, as preparations are underway to demolish
Knottingley Sports Centre.
The sports centre was closed in February last year after an external report
highlighted that it, and Castleford Swimming Pool, cannot provide the services
to meet the current demand as leisure needs have changed so significantly in
the last 30 years. It also reported that the centres were beyond the end of
their useful life and were expensive to maintain.
The Council closed the building, alongside Castleford Swimming Pool, as part of
its plans to build the new multi-purpose Five Towns Leisure and Wellbeing
Centre in Pontefract Park.
The Council is in the process of appointing a contractor to demolish
Knottingley Sports Centre building, with the demolition expected to take place
during the first week of March.
Cllr Jacquie Speight,
Wakefield Council’s Cabinet Member for Culture, Leisure and Sport, said: “We
are pleased that works have begun on site at Knottingley Sport Centre. The
empty building has attracted vandalism and anti-social behaviour in recent
months, so we are pleased that plans are moving forward for the demolition.”
A planning application for the Five Towns Leisure and Wellbeing Centre is
expected to be submitted in the next couple of months.
The plans for the £14.8m complex in Pontefract Park include an 8 or 10-lane
swimming pool, studio pool with moveable floor, and a splash pad water
confidence area. The centre would also offer a gym, exercise studios, a
two-court sports hall, a ‘clip and climb’ activity, café and soft play area as
well as meeting rooms for community use and referral rooms for exercise and
weight management support. Outside there would be tennis courts, an activity
and exercise space, five-a-side 3G (synthetic grass) pitches and car parking.