Liverpool Council has issued another apology after more delays were confirmed to the refurbishment of a crumbling Tuebrook leisure centre.
After years of waiting and time lost, the local authority signed off on the upgrade and repair at the dilapidated Peter Lloyd Lifestyles leisure centre last year. An urgent decision was taken by officers in August to green light the pot of cash needed to bring the popular location back into service.
The site is unable to open to the public in any form in its current state of repair and has been closed since the start of covid-19 pandemic. It is estimated that closure of the site has lost the local authority £1m a year in potential revenue.
READ MORE: Everton new stadium latest as club open to talks over mid-season move
The council has confirmed that a total of £1.4m has been made available for the work, with more than half - £753,000 - to be used in repairing the roof by contractors Liquid Roofing and Kier building services for project fees. A further £336,000 has been earmarked for “nonessential internal refurbishments” according to a decision report issued earlier this year.
Despite hopes the site could reopen in September last year, documentation seen by the ECHO has confirmed that internal works will not be finished until December at the earliest. The document said one contractor during the current open tender period threatened to pull out if the length of time allowed for work was not extended.
As a result, a period of 17 weeks has been allocated to bring the site up to scratch. It is the latest stage of the works after the completion of much needed roof improvements, themselves delayed by water ingress and the cold weather during winter.
Councillor Harry Doyle, Liverpool Council cabinet member for health, wellbeing and culture, said while progress on the outside of the building was good to see, he was disappointed by the ongoing timescales and hoped to see a phased re-opening.
He said: “We have made some really positive progress with Peter Lloyd to date and the completion of a new, watertight roof last month was a real milestone moment. I’m very disappointed with the current works timescale – this is my local centre and I’m as keen as other users and residents to get the doors reopened as soon as possible.
“However, the scale of the internal work that needs to be taken is extensive – from completely re-laying flooring, tiling the pool, refurbishing the gym and decorating throughout – and is expected to take around four months to complete. I’d like to apologise once more to fellow Lifestyles users and the community for any frustration this delay has caused.
“I’d like to assure everyone that I am consistently challenging these timescales and am urging the team to explore the option of a phased re-opening of the centre. In the meantime, please bear with us while this essential work is carried out to bring the centre back up to the expected quality.”
Join the Liverpool ECHO's breaking news and top headlines WhatsApp community
READ NEXT
Connor Chapman blamed Elle Edwards murder on 'friend' and said he was at home watching YouTube
Receive latest from Elle Edwards murder trial straight to your phone with our WhatsApp community
