Action needed for sports centre (From Gazette & Herald)

Action needed for sports centre

HAVING established a thriving table tennis coaching group in Malton and Norton area through the schools, I was interested in the David Jeffels articles regarding a sports centre.

When are we going to see some action?

In March 2001, a Ryedale council sport and recreation strategy document was published at a cost of £20,000 (which says it all) but what action has been taken since then? None that I am aware of, except the recent (two years later) appointment of a sports officer. Now it's proposed to spend a further £50,000, plus a members' steering group's costs, on a feasibility study. Thank goodness this proposal was turned down. It doesn't need 'experts' sitting at computers, charging enormous fees, telling us what we need. You only have to ask those active in sport, such as coaches, managers and players to give you the answers. Whilst the sports centre proposal is certainly needed, there is also a need for a less-costly sports centre of excellence for indoor sports.

Having explored the possibilities in the Malton and Norton area, the obvious place to site an indoor sports centre is Brooklyn Community Centre. A meeting held recently with the centre's manager, representatives of North Yorkshire, Ryedale and Norton town councils, resulted in North Yorkshire council (owner of the land) agreeing in principle to an extension of the centre to provide an indoor sports centre for table tennis, netball, badminton, bowls etc. The cost of building at £1,200 per sq metre was estimated to be £660,000 and the running costs at £30,000 per annum. This was considered prohibitive.

Considering that parking, toilets, kitchen and other facilities already exist at the centre, these estimates certainly seem prohibitive. We were advised that no significant amount of funding was likely to be available from North Yorkshire or Ryedale councils, Sport England or any other potential partners. As we are not satisfied with the exorbitant figures quoted, a local chartered surveyor has offered to prepare plans and costings.

It seems to me we need not look any further, or waste any more money on bureaucracy. North Yorkshire council has the land and agrees in principle to the centre being built at Brooklyn. Ryedale council has the funds, some £7m of Ryedale rate payers' money to invest. Why don't they get their heads together and get the thing built?

If we are going to produce future sports champions for this country we need support at grass roots level now.

Updated: 11:34 Wednesday, July 23, 2003