‘No leisure centre and no clear plan from the council’
RESIDENTS CALL FOR FACILITY TO RE-OPEN WITH REDEVELOPMENT PROPOSAL REFUSED
CALLS are being made for Gurnell Leisure Centre to be re-opened as there is “no clear action plan” from Ealing Council after it refused planning permission for its redevelopment.
Council bosses announced in July last year that the Greenford site would remain closed after lockdown due to pressures of the pandemic making it “financially unviable” with a fall in memberships and rocketing running and repair costs.
The focus instead was to redevelop the centre, subject to planning permission, which was expected to be completed for February 2024.
However, the controversial plan was voted down by councillors on March 17, deciding the “monstrosity” development did not meet the “very special circumstances” requirement to build on the site, which is on Metropolitan Open Land (MOL), and that the buildings, including tower blocks up to 17 storeys for housing, were overdevelopment.
A petition launched by campaign group Save Gurnell on Sunday March 28 to re-open the centre has already gained hundreds of signatures. It reads: “Gurnell Leisure Centre has now been closed for over a year as Ealing Council decided not to re-open it when restrictions eased last summer.
“The key factor stated in their decision was that it was due to be demolished in early 2021 as part of their redevelopment plans. However, the planning application (which included six tower blocks on protected land) was refused by the Ealing planning committee on March 17. We are now left with no leisure centre and no clear plan of action from the council.”
It added: “Gyms and leisure centres play a crucial role in helping people to be active and they will be crucial in our nation’s recovery from coronavirus (Covid-19) as well as wider health, wellbeing and community benefits. Therefore, we request that London Borough of Ealing re-opens Gurnell Leisure Centre alongside their other facilities (subject to government approval).”
Last year the council also faced opposition over closing the centre, with opposition parties and residents warning it will “hit the poorest hardest”.
The Conservative group challenged the decision in a overview and scrutiny meeting on August 6, concerned there was no impact assessment made on elderly, disabled and poorer visitors who will have to travel further away due to the closure. Lib Dem councillor Jon Ball also raised concerns that the leisure centre could be a repeat of projects such as Ealing Cinema and Victoria Hall where valued public facilities are closed for redevelopment, but the projects “get into trouble and it drags on for years and years”.
However, leisure and finance boss Bassam Mahfouz defended the decision last year, saying: “The context is this centre is nearly 40 years old. It’s effectively a dinosaur that’s been on its last legs, it stands, barely, amongst a sea of reimagined, reinvigorated leisure centres across the borough.”
In a response to the new Save Gurnell petition, an Ealing Council spokesperson said: “Although we’re disappointed with the planning committee’s decision to reject the plans to redevelop Gurnell Leisure Centre, this outcome demonstrates that our planning process is robust, with council submissions treated like those from any other applicant.
“Over the coming period we will take stock, look into the specific reasons for refusal and consider the best options in response to the decision.”