After the announcement of the closure of the Beach Leisure Centre pool, many Press & Journal and Evening Express readers expressed outrage and sadness online.
Sport Aberdeen announced on Tuesday the pool on Aberdeen’s beach front will be “temporarily” closing due to the rising cost of energy bills.
It will remain open for the summer holidays before shutting on August 21.
While the rest of the centre will remain fully operational, the pool will not open until at least spring next year.
Sport Aberdeen said the decision was made to help “protect” other facilities in the city.
We’ve rounded up reaction from our readers on social media, but let us know what you think about the temporary closure in the comments below – or let us know your favourite memory of braving the rapid river or battling against the wave machine.
Many shared memories over the years
The pool has been a permanent feature of Aberdeen’s beachfront since 1989 with many sharing fond memories of the flumes, wave machine and water features.
Following the announcement, a lot of readers shared some of these online on our social media pages.
Janice Hopper Sheehan, who remembered the opening of the pool, said she and her brother were “beyond excited” when it first opened to the public and was “gutted” to hear of the closure.
Having visited a lot when he was a child, Kenny Taylor said: “I had such fun in that baths on the flumes when I was a kid.
“I took my son down the other week, we enjoyed the wave pool etc but it sounded like the flumes hadn’t been open for a while. It’s a disgrace.”
Swimming lessons already at capacity
Sport Aberdeen said there are plans to reallocate children to other pools within the city but many parents voiced their concerns.
Lindsey Williams said: “Just something else Aberdeen is losing. This place is going downhill very fast and it’s disgusting and sad that we can’t keep our city flourishing for our kids.”
A few mentioned the already-long waiting lists for children’s swimming lessons in the city. Aberdeen dad, Frank Burke, said it was a “joke”.
“Both my girls go here for swimming lessons,” he said. “The amount of children that will lose their places is unreal.”
Annie Buchan from Aberdeen said: “Swimming lessons seem to be at capacity and I guess it will be very difficult to get everyone places elsewhere.
“Sport Aberdeen lessons are a good budget option to give more folk the opportunity to join in. Lessons are more expensive elsewhere.”
‘Facilities far behind other Scottish cities’
However, some commenting on our social media pages called the leisure centre a bit of “dump” complaining about the cleanliness of the facilities.
Aileen Morrison said: “The few times I have visited there was a lot of green where there shouldn’t be. And for a kids pool there are no sinks at child height to wash hands.”
Some suggested it would help the football stadium development move forward and said the facilities were outdated.
Louise Macleod added: “I think they just can’t be bothered paying to maintain this one knowing it’s probably going to be demolished to make way for the football stadium.
“For the size of city Aberdeen is, we should have a better pool with flumes etc like they do in Dundee and Inverness. Why are we so far behind facilities wise? For such an affluent city it makes no sense.”
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