Peterborough Regional Pool users 'cancelling memberships' over loss of car park, councillor claims

Peterborough’s swimming facilities were a frequent subject of debate at this week’s Peterborough City Council (PCC) meeting.

Leader Cllr Wayne Fitzgerald (Conservatives) told councillors that the sooner the city centre Regional Pool is knocked down and rebuilt “the better”, adding that this is a “priority”.

Meanwhile, Cllr John Fox (Peterborough First) introduced a motion to ensure swimming facilities are available in his ward, Werrington, before withdrawing it with assurances from Cllr Fitzgerald that he will try to facilitate this.

There was also much debate about the Regional Pool Car Park, just off Bishop’s Road, which will shortly be affected by ARU Peterborough building work.

PCC has previously stated that some car parking spaces near the pool will remain available while a temporary car park is planned on the football pitches next to Peterborough’s athletics track.

Pool users can also use Bishop’s Road car park, roughly an extra five minutes away from the pool, or another city centre car park.

Cllr Marco Cereste (Conservatives), the council’s cabinet member for planning, added at the meeting that new spaces will be provided on site at the Regional Pool itself including parking bays for drivers with disabilities.

He continued that pool users will not be “inconvenienced at all” by the loss of “a small part” of the Regional Pool car park and that the alternative parking “most definitely will be put in place”.

But he didn’t offer a date for this becoming available, saying that details will be “shared in the upcoming days”.

Cllr Heather Skibsted (Greens) challenged Cllr Cereste on the arrangements, saying that she has “spoken to members who are intending to cancel their memberships” because of this issue, as well as staff with “targets to meet for usage which will be affected”.

She added that moving parking arrangements further away will “detract from usage”, particularly among “families, the elderly and users of the athletics track”.

Cllr Christian Hogg (Liberal Democrats) also asked for assurance people who need to use disabled parking bays aren’t going to have to “wait a number of months while the council gets their ducks in order”.

Cllr Cereste said: “It is not the case that people are going to have to walk further and it’s not the case that they’re going to be inconvenienced.

“Much of the new disabled bays will be even closer to the Regional Pool than they are now and we will be creating more spaces on the existing car park.

“However, we will also be creating more space in a temporary car park nearby until the future is clear as to what we’re going to do for the city and the pool.”

Leader Cllr Fitzgerald added his assurances that “it’s all fine and officers have assured me everything will be tickety-boo and no-one will be inconvenienced in the short term”.

Cllr Hogg responded that his comments “gave a bit of room for manoeuvre”.

Planning permission for the construction of a temporary car park near the Regional Pool was granted last year.

But plans situate this just east of the Regional Pool, while the football pitches are to the west.

When work will begin and end on the temporary car park remains unclear.