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26
Jun
Landscaping underway at £20 million Ripon leisure site
Landscaping at Ripon’s leisure centre site is progressing, with ground levelled and the seeding of grass underway.
The work will eventually see playing fields donated in 1948 by former Ripon councillor Alderman Cyril Wade 'for the benefit of the young people of the city' reinstated and brought back into active use after being closed to the public for more than five years.
That's how long work has been taking place refurbishing the old leisure centre building and constructing a new pool.
The overall cost of the project, which was initially announced as a 17-month, £10.2 million contract in 2019, is now beyond £20 million.
It seems that the playing fields could finally be back in use soon.
Last month, Councillor Simon Myers, North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for leisure, provided the Stray Ferret with a statement which said:
Landscaping work at Ripon Leisure Centre is ongoing and most of it is expected to be completed by summer 2025.
However, as with all landscaping works, it can be affected by planting and growing seasons and some features may take longer to fully mature.
The playing fields will reopen to the public once the newly seeded grass has established, and a football pitch is part of the scheme.
While landscaping is underway, the refurbishment of the 1995 leisure centre building continues and is due for completion in the summer of 2026.
The land has been levelled and grass seed is being planted
In April, the Stray Ferret reported that another six-figure sum is to be spent on the leisure centre after North Yorkshire Council received £270,000 from the government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
The money will be spent on refurbishing the leisure centre, which is now officially known as Active North Yorkshire Ripon – The Jack Laugher Centre.
The six-lane swimming pool at the site has been open since 2022, but members had to use a temporary gym in the car park until February this year while work to stabilise the site was carried out following the discovery of a sinkhole.
In his statement, Cllr Myers said:
An additional £270,000 from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund has been allocated to the scheme in this financial year. A forecast underspend of £1.1 million is being carried forward to 2025/26 to support the improvements at the leisure centre and playing fields.
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