[broomhillsaved]

The Broomhill Pool Trust have taken out a full page Letter advertisement in today's Evening Star (Ipswich) 14th December 2009.

This is an Open Letter to Ipswich Borough Council Executive ahead of the council meeting tomorrow (15th December 2009 at 6pm) where
i) the all-options report will be considered and
ii) the recommendation to remove the £1 million pound offer towards restoration will be tabled.

The lead heading says:

BROOMHILL POOL CAN BE SAVED - QUALITY OPERATORS HAVE EXPRESSED INTEREST

OPEN LETTER TO IPSWICH BOROUGH COUNCIL EXECUTIVE

Ahead of Tuesday's key "all options" decision, the Broomhill Pool Trust, supporters of the Trust (some 18,500+) and enthusiasts of the lido in Ipswich and beyond, call upon Ipswich Borough Council Executive to do the right thing for this iconic 1930's Grade II Listed swimming facility. Quality operators are preparing their proposals for IBC's 10th February 2010 deadline, so we respectfully appeal to the IBC Executive to:

1. Approve Option 2: Disposal of Broomhill Pool to a quality operator; to restore the pool as a swimming facility.

2. Fulfil manifesto pledges and continue your £1 million guarantee; thereby allowing Option 2 (and all funding options) to be fully explored and encouraging an operator to secure the facility's future.

3. Commit fully to delivering a successful outcome for the facility.

The 2006 Feasibility Study and 2009 All Options Appraisal studies prove conclusively:-

# That there are clear expressions of interest from quality operators

# That business plans in 2006 and 2009, professionally and independently prepared by leading consultants (with input from 22 similar situated outdoor pools and lidos), demonstrate that the facility can run without an operating loss.

#That the facility currently has no structural defects beyond repair.

# That it can be reinstated with just 9 months building work as a heated outdoor pool with enhanced community facilities providing benefits 12 months a year.

# That at a (2009) revised rebuild cost of just £3.6 million (down from £4.2 million) the project addresses an undersupply of water space in Ipswich - as highlighted in IBC's November 2006 Swimming Needs Assessment (consultants: Torkildsen Barclay)

# That demolition would be both costly and is highly unlikely. The facility is Grade II Listed and is built within Broomhill Park (thus having no real commercial value)

# That mothballing the facility will bring no benefit to the people of Ipswich; only continued health and safety and management costs. It would represent a wasteful use of a much needed public facility. The site would slip into further disrepair, increasing future refurbishment costs, and leave taxpayers with a much bigger bill for tomorrow.

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This is a really extreme step for the Trust to take, but they have been driven to distraction by the Council's slant on Broomhill eg claiming that Sport England's Facility Planning Model suggests there is enough water space in Ipswich and that therefore the plug can be pulled on funding for the lido; implying that the Trust have failed in their aims etc.

The Trust wanted to put their side of the story for local residents to clearly see.