Perth Leisure Pool will partly reopen to the public tomorrow following a boiler issue.
A temporary solution has been found to open the training and teaching pools, as well as the gym and health suite from Tuesday, January 14.
However the leisure pool, Monkey Jungle and flumes will remain closed while engineers continue their investigations to try and fix the boiler.
The entire facility has been closed to the public this year due to both the water and building temperature being too cold.
The pools have been closed since December 27 – when they were due to reopen following Christmas – and the entire building, including the health suite and gym, since January 3 when the building was due to reopen following the New Year break.
On Monday, January 13 Live Active Leisure – which runs the facility on behalf of Perth and Kinross Council – announced a temporary solution had been put in place.
A Live Active Leisure spokesperson said: “We have implemented a temporary solution to the boiler issue at Perth Leisure Pool that allows us to reopen the training and teaching pools, gym and health suite from tomorrow, Tuesday January 14. This enables the return of swimming lessons, lane swimming and club swimming in those pools.
“Regrettably, the boiler issue remains unresolved, therefore the leisure water, Monkey Jungle and flumes will remain closed for the time being as engineers continue their investigations. We are working with two separate contractors, as well as our on-site team, to rectify this issue and we plan to open the leisure pool and features as soon as we can.
“Due to the temporary nature of the solution in place, there may be some fluctuations in air and water temperatures and a further period of closure may be required to fully resolve the issue once engineers have identified the cause. Further updates will be provided when the situation changes.”
Perth Leisure Pool’s Operations manager Debbie Scott added: “We’re pleased to have found a solution that allows us to reopen some of our key facilities. Although this is a temporary solution, we’re working diligently to fully resolve the underlying issue. We understand how important these facilities are to our community, and we’re committed to keeping our customers informed. We are grateful to all our customers for their patience during this closure and we apologise for any inconvenience caused.”
Last September Perth and Kinross councillors voted to build a replacement pool and leisure centre – called PH2O – on Perth’s Thimblerow Car Park. The plan is to demolish Perth Leisure Pool to make way for affordable housing upon completion of PH2O.
The proposed £61 million energy-efficient facility would feature an eight-lane 25m pool, 12.5m x 8.5m teaching pool (both with movable floors), an indoor play area, games hall, gym, studios and café. Council officers are exploring the costs of including ‘leisure water’ options, such as waves, a lazy river and flumes.
However, following the September 2024 decision, London-based Twentieth Century Society resubmitted its bid to Historic Environment Scotland for Perth Leisure Pool to be considered for listed status.
And Conservative councillors – who voted against the decision along with Labour and the Independent group – are calling for Perth and Kinross Council to reconsider its decision to build PH2O on Perth’s Thimblerow Car Park. Over the festive period, they watched shoppers struggle to find a parking space at the busy city centre car park.
Perth City South Conservative councillor Andy Chan last week said: “I strongly believe that the Glover Street site presents a more viable and sustainable option for this development.”
He added: “Losing the Thimblerow Car Park to accommodate the new pool would significantly impact businesses and the already struggling High Street, further emphasising the need for a more strategic approach to site selection.”
SNP council leader Grant Laing said the current pool facility was “showing its age” with long-standing issues such as the walkway from Glasgow Road and outdoor pool having been closed for some time before these latest issues.
He said detailed plans for the new PH2O facility would be brought forward “in due course”.