Whispers over Sydonia site future

Plans by Herefordshire Council to demolish the disused swimming pool have led to new fears that the land was earmarked for development - despite repeated assurances to the contrary.

"The people of Leominster are going to take some convincing, " Councillor Pauline Davies told the town council.

"They think there is some sinister reason behind the closure of Sydonia - people are very, very suspicious about it."

The land remains zoned for leisure in the Local Plan yet 'Chinese whispers' about it were rife, said Councillor Brettina Meadows.

"It doesn't matter if you wrote it in blood they would not believe you," she said.

The Sydonia leisure area, left to 'the children of Leominster for ever' by 1930s benefactor Sidney Bridges is covered by a covenant. The legal status was being examined, the town council heard.

Councillor Roger Hunt who gave an update on the future of the site said there were understandable "anxieties" in the community following the huge loss of green space in the area and the demolition last year of Leominster Youth Centre.

"People around Sydonia are nervous - when you have lost as much as they have done there it is easy to see why, " he said.

Councillor Hunt mooted a partnership of the town and county councils to restore the site to its former glory.

The launch of such an initiative could send a signal to the community that Sydonia was safe, he added.

l Councillor Roger Hunt, leader of the We Want Our Pool Campaign, welcomed an assurance - given at a public meeting by county council leader Roger Phillips - that the county was pressing ahead to build a new Leominster pool.

Town and county councillor John Thomas said of last week's meeting: "It was the most positive we have had. The bitterness is dissipating. Energy is being channelled into action."

l Charity status is being sought by WWOP as it sets out to raise a £250,000 public contribution. The new pool is expected to cost more than £2 million.