The minutes of last week’s Overview & Scrutiny Meeting are here:
http://www.shepway.gov.uk/moderngov/ieListDocuments.aspx…
They include this:
“Examples of leisure centres – it is anticipated that members of the Princes Parade Working Group, Overview and Scrutiny Committee and officers will visit the Hart Leisure Centre in Hampshire which is of a similar size to the proposed development.”
But the Hart Leisure Centre has many more facilities than are proposed for the Princes Parade leisure centre as these links make clear:http://www.strategicleisure.co.uk/new-23m-hart-leisure-cen…/
https://www.everyoneactive.com/centre/hart-leisure-centre/
We have contacted cabinet members and some officers with the suggestion that wherever the new leisure centre is built, the business should include a proper consultation with the public about what we would facilities we would like to be included. Surely this should be the first stage in any financial viability study or else we could end up with an expensive white elephant. Note that Dover DC id exactly that when they were putting together the plans for their new leisure centre and have published detailed reports on their website. Not all the facilities the public wanted were affordable but that is clearly explained in the report for all to see.