A STATE of the art fitness suite could be created at New Mills Leisure Centre under plans to encourage more people to stay healthy.
Although firm plans are not yet in place, one of the proposed locations is within the existing squash courts at the Hyde Bank Road facility.
A spokesperson for High Peak Borough Council said: "The council is keen to get more people, more active a
nd the development of a larger state of the art fitness facility at New Mills Leisure Centre would encourage more local people to do regular physical activity.
"The use of the squash courts has been falling for the last five years and they are currently left unoccupied for 75 per cent of the time. This reflects national trends.
"It is anticipated that if a high quality fitness facility is developed at New Mills Leisure Centre, not only would members of the public benefit, and the overall running costs for the centre would come down, helping to keep Council Tax increases at their recent low levels, but it would provide an enhanced state of the art public facility that New Mills does not have, unlike the other major towns in the High Peak."
Consultation with local residents and centre users will take place before any final decision is taken.
High Peak Council is currently working with DC Leisure Management, the future operators of the authority's leisure facilities.
An overall investment of £800,000 is expected, with over £250,000 going to facilities in New Mills. This will also help the council meet its repair and maintenance liability against the buildings, which currently stands at £1.3 million over the past ten years.
The full article contains 287 words and appears in Buxton Advertiser newspaper.
