Rescued Richard Dunn centre ‘could be major part of city regeneration’
“A BIT of imagination and belief ” could make the newly listed Richard Dunn Sports Centre a key part of Bradford’s cultural and economic regeneration.
Earlier this week, Historic England announced that the complex in Rooley Lane – earmarked for demolition later this year – was to become Bradford’s newest Grade II-listed building.
The status means questions now remain over the future of the building, which closed as a leisure centre in late 2019. The request to list the building was made by the 20th Century Society, which says it is delighted with the decision.
An expert in architectural history believes the listing could mean the iconic structure becomes an “anchor” for new development in the area.
The centre was shut once a replacement facility, Sedbergh Leisure Centre, was opened a short distance from the site.
Bradford Council, which owns the building, had cited the high running costs of the building and the cost of bringing it up to modern standards.
Before it was shut, the sports centre was one of the most energy inefficient buildings in Yorkshire.
The council has said it was currently weighing up the next steps for the centre.
Dr Otto Saumarez Smith, an
architectural and urban historian with a speciality in leisure centres, was consulted on the decision to list the building.
He said: “The Richard Dunn is one of a very small number of still-existing centres from the first wave of British leisure centre designs, which used innovative forms, often taken from international precedent – influences from Japan’s Summerland to the Houston Astrodome – to provide space for new forms of 1970s pleasure and fun.”
The centre was built in the 1970s and named after Bradford boxer Richard Dunn, who fought Muhammad Ali in 1976. Although Dunn rocked Ali a few times during the match, Ali knocked out Dunn in the fifth round.