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Leeds: £740,000 boost for Middleton Leisure Centre
Hundreds of thousands of pounds of leisure centre improvements have been given the go-ahead.
Middleton Leisure Centre, in Ring Road, Middleton, will have nearly £740,000 spent on renovations to its changing rooms, car park, community space and playing fields.
The refurbishments – due to start in April and last five months – were approved by Leeds City Council’s executive board.
If extra funding from Sports England is secured the centre’s reception and entrance could be improved.
This could see more than £880,000 spent on the centre in total, just months after its swimming pool was closed.
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Council Deputy leader and Middleton Park councillor Judith Blake, said: “In Middleton and the whole of south Leeds we have a tremendous amount of involvement in youth football and rugby.
“Anything we can do to improve facilities for young people out there is a positive step.”
The funds pledged will see the addition of a third generation artificial playing field, multi-use games area, a community room which caters to people with learning disabilities and disabled parking spaces.
Changing rooms will be expanded, the car park will be resurfaced and remarked and the existing playing fields will be improved.
Some funds will go towards demolition of the old swimming pool, which was closed in September and is expected to be turned into a youth recreation space.
Coun Blake said: “In a very difficult time when we are having to close facilities because of government cuts, I am delighted that we have got this opportunity to expand facilities at the centre.
“I am very disappointed that we couldn’t keep the pool going but the reality, with the age of it and amount of investment needed to get it up to standard, it wasn’t possible.”
A large proportion of funding will come from Section 106 funds gathered from a housing development in Sharpe Lane.
Coun Kim Groves (Lab, Middleton Park) said: “There has been overwhelming support in the local community to keep Middleton Leisure Centre open.”
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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