HUDDERSFIELD will get a new sports centre.
Councillors yesterday gave the green light to a controversial £36m centre at Spring Grove Car Park in Springwood.
The state-of-the-art sports centre is the first step in a huge reorganisation of Huddersfield town centre.
Kirklees Council wants to demolish the existing sports centre on Southgate, along with the Ibbotson and Lonsbrough flats.
Tesco would then build a new store on the site by 2014 and knock down its town centre store on Viaduct Street, replacing it with a hotel, housing, shops and offices by 2016.
The council’s Huddersfield Planning Sub-committee yesterday approved the new centre on 1.8 hectares of land which includes Spring Grove car park, the former Swallow Court Adult Day Centre and part of Merton Street.
But residents and councillors spoke against the development at the meeting at Huddersfield Town Hall.
Ursula Hancock said: “Instead of spending money on a sports centre, spend money on things that are needed like roads and street lights.”
Hazel Spencer, of Springwood and Greenhead Tenants and Residents Association, told councillors that the sports centre would “completely dominate” houses on Spring Grove Street.
Frank O’Brien, of Huddersfield Civic Society complained that the centre included white render rather than stone.
He told councillors this might be appropriate for Milton Keynes or Basildon but not “a stone town” like Huddersfield.
Newsome Green Clr Andrew Cooper also spoke against the sports centre proposal saying it was “a Trojan horse” for a huge new Tesco which would “cost jobs”.
But Chris Darley, agent for the plan, told councillors: “This will make a considerable improvement to sports in Huddersfield.
“We believe the positives outweigh any perceived negatives.”
Sub-committee member Clr Tony Woodhead agreed.
The Lindley Lib Dem said: “I support this application and I think it will be a great improvement.”
Kirkburton Conservative Clr Adrian Murphy also agreed, saying: “We desperately need a new sports centre.”
The sub-committee voted nine to two in favour of the sports centre, with only Golcar Lib Dem Clr Christine Iredale and Kirkburton Conservative Clr Christine Smith voting against the plan.
The centre, which the council hopes to open by 2012, will include a leisure pool complete with wave machine, flume and sidewinder; a teaching pool; two large sports halls, a squash court, a fitness suite and a climbing wall.
The pedestrian subway linking the site with Huddersfield Bus Station will be improved with new lighting.
The new sports centre will have 124 parking spaces, compared with 443 in the current Spring Grove Car Park.
However, council officers claim that new parking elsewhere around the town centre will more than make up the difference.
