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06
Jan 2022
Green light for major refurbishment of Harrogate Hydro
Harrogate Borough Council has given the green light for a major refurbishment of Harrogate's Hydro swimming pool.
Councillors on the planning committee approved the plans today with work on the project set to start in April.
The Hydro was first opened in 1999 and replaced the old Coppice Valley pool.
As part of its plans to overhaul leisure services, which were approved in June 2020, the council outlined a £13.5 million project to refurbish The Hydro.
The authority will demolish the current ‘drum’ entrance and replace it with a larger structure that includes a bigger café and reception area on the ground floor and a new 400 square metres fitness suite on the first floor.
Outside, the car park will be reconfigured with a new area bicycle storage and room for six electric vehicle charging points.
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Cllr Stanley Lumley, Harrogate Borough Council's cabinet member for culture, tourism and sport, and chair of the board of directors at Brimhams Active, said:
Mark Tweedie, managing director of Brimhams Active, said:
Further projects at The Hydro
The move to refurbish The Hydro comes as other work is being done to upgrade the building.
In July, the council confirmed it is to buy a new diving platform to replace the damaged one that has kept divers out of the pool for eight months.
Meanwhile, the council has also given approval for 420 solar panels to be installed on the roof of the pool as part of a decarbonisation project.
The council successfully bid this year for funding from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy‘s public sector decarbonisation scheme, which helped to fund the panels.
A total of £1.8 million will be spent at The Hydro to install the solar panels, as well as replace gas boilers with air source heat pumps and put in place new energy monitoring and control systems.
The Hydro is now run by Brimhams Active, a new arm’s length leisure company set up by the council this year. It has taken over the running of 12 leisure facilities in Harrogate, Knaresborough, Ripon and Pateley Bridge.
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