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22
Apr 2021
Council hopes to reopen Ripon and Starbeck Baths next month
A senior Harrogate councillor says he hopes Ripon and Starbeck Baths will reopen next month.
Councillor Stanley Lumley, cabinet member for culture, tourism and sport at Harrogate Borough, said the swimming pools were currently closed despite a government go-ahead to reopen because of staffing shortages and “challenges” around social distancing.
He added the council is “hoping” they can reopen in May, although Knaresborough Pool will stay shut due to maintenance problems.
Under the government’s roadmap out of lockdown, swimming pools and gyms were allowed to reopen on 12 April when the Hydro in Harrogate and Nidderdale Pool in Pateley Bridge welcomed back customers.
Knaresborough Pool has been closed since the end of last year and will remain shut longer as repairs due to be carried out by specialist engineers from Spain have been halted by travel restrictions, the council previously said.
It said there is an “ongoing” issue with the pool filter and that it was trying to find a UK-based firm to fix the problem.
Read more:
- Starbeck Baths should be ‘kept open at all costs’, say residents
- Stray Views: Don’t sell Ripon Spa Baths!
It comes as the council is pushing ahead with plans to demolish Knaresborough Pool and build a replacement leisure centre at the same site, while a major refurbishment of Ripon Leisure Centre is due for completion “before the end of the year,” councillor Lumley said.
After construction delays, the “multi-million pound” Ripon project had previously been scheduled for completion in November, and the final costs are not yet known.
The upgrades are being carried out as a replacement for the 116-year-old Ripon Spa Baths which has been put up for sale for an undisclosed sum.
The move has been met with opposition from residents and councillors, with councillor Pauline McHardy last night making calls for the sale to be withdrawn while work on the city’s regeneration masterplan is underway.
Councillor Graham Swift, deputy leader and cabinet member for resources, enterprise and economic development, responded:
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