Leisureland

Notch000

Any sign of it reopening again ??? is there any progress on work being done there or even started ?? or are the council just sitting on there tod doing F all about it ??? I passed it a few days ago and there looked to be nothing happening ??
Thanks

Gremlinertia

There is work ongoing, but from what I recollect there was talk that it would be autumn before it'll look like reopening.

beardybrewer

Yep, the gym was meant to reopen sooner but the pool and facilities are going to completely miss out on the summer. It seems ludicrous as you'd imagine it is a peak time for income, but then it's not private so I guess they can just rely on the household charge to prop it up.

antoobrien

Notch000 wrote: »

Any sign of it reopening again ??? is there any progress on work being done there or even started ?? or are the council just sitting on there tod doing F all about it ??? I passed it a few days ago and there looked to be nothing happening ??
Thanks

It'll be December, there was an unexpected extra delay that cost them 6 weeks.

Before that the council were trying to get the insurance company to cough up for repairs (which they don't strictly have to do, act of god and all that).

Here's wat it looked like a few weeks ago (pic from article in the tribune

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fergiesfolly

Are they going to upgrade the building or facilities.
Seems a waste to have it out of commission for so long and not take the opportunity to upgrade it

Mrs OBumble

fergiesfolly wrote: »

Are they going to upgrade the building or facilities.
Seems a waste to have it out of commission for so long and not take the opportunity to upgrade it

Are you offering to pay for an upgrade? Seems a waste to be rebuilding a loss making facility, but that's all the insurance will generally do.

Notch000

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Are you offering to pay for an upgrade? Seems a waste to be rebuilding a loss making facility, but that's all the insurance will generally do.

this loss making facility is a community resource

renegademaster

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Are you offering to pay for an upgrade? Seems a waste to be rebuilding a loss making facility, but that's all the insurance will generally do.

its making a loss due to the facility not being large or modern enough to put on big shows, also poor management and their lack of foresight is a major issue.

snubbleste

antoobrien wrote: »

Here's wat it looked like a few weeks ago (pic from article in the tribune)

That is one lonely chair in the deep end

Mrs OBumble

Notch000 wrote: »

this loss making facility is a community resource

So's the hospital. I know which I'd rather my tax dollars went towards.

If people want to swim, they use the ocean or they pay to use private leisure facilities.

As a concert or event venue, Leisureland is a complete joke.

JohnCleary

snubbleste wrote: »

That is one lonely chair in the deep end

The deep end is actually the shallow end, and vice versa. The reason being is that there needs to be additional space for the rams of the adjustable floor.

Daily piece of useless info right there folks :pac:

cfeeneyinterior

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

So's the hospital. I know which I'd rather my tax dollars went towards.

If people want to swim, they use the ocean or they pay to use private leisure facilities.

As a concert or event venue, Leisureland is a complete joke.

Private facilities would tend to be membership-based or a little bit too expensive for low income families. People need to learn how to swim; for safety reasons. For this reason money should be spent and as usual lost on the facility to enable kids learn how to swim and adults too. To save lives at the end of the day..

I assume they are upgrading the pumps in there etc so maybe it won't be flippin freeezin anymore althouh all that glass and a thin roof don't give A+ energy ratings.

Forget the halll, thats years out of date and doesn't make or lose money. Galway is too small for any large scale venue I'd say, if it scould support a large venue it would have been built.

-crisp-

What actually caused the damage? I get the gym would have been wrecked but I dont get how a swimming pool being flooded would do so much damage apart from broken tiles or needing to repair or replace the filters and pumps.
Can someone please enlighten me?

challengemaster

cfeeneyinterior wrote: »

People need to learn how to swim; for safety reasons.

I don't remember any basic human right of learning to swim. Plenty of people go through life who can't swim and don't drown. It's a privilege to learn to swim, not a right.

And I can't think of too many safety reasons you could end up in where you need to swim, unless you've made a choice or decision to end up in such a situation.

Krieg

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gordongekko

challengemaster wrote: »

I don't remember any basic human right of learning to swim. Plenty of people go through life who can't swim and don't drown. It's a privilege to learn to swim, not a right.

And I can't think of too many safety reasons you could end up in where you need to swim, unless you've made a choice or decision to end up in such a situation.

Not sure if serious....

jkforde

-crisp- wrote: »

What actually caused the damage? I get the gym would have been wrecked but I dont get how a swimming pool being flooded would do so much damage apart from broken tiles or needing to repair or replace the filters and pumps.
Can someone please enlighten me?

I think sewage got in to the grouting and soaked in behind the tiles thus requiring a total refit... open to correction though...

Mrs OBumble

cfeeneyinterior wrote: »

Private facilities would tend to be membership-based or a little bit too expensive for low income families. People need to learn how to swim; for safety reasons. For this reason money should be spent and as usual lost on the facility to enable kids learn how to swim and adults too.

Prices at Leisureland as a subsidised facility are also too expensive for low-income families. Eg 1 adult and 3 children is E16. (ref) - and that doesn't include any swimming education.

I agree that ideally learning to swim should be part of the primary school curriculum - funded by the education system, not the local council! But I don't believe that happens ... and I don't see why the taxpayer should be subsidising anyone's leisure facilities.

gordongekko

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Prices at Leisureland as a subsidised facility are also too expensive for low-income families. Eg 1 adult and 3 children is E16. (ref) - and that doesn't include any swimming education.

I agree that ideally learning to swim should be part of the primary school curriculum - funded by the education system, not the local council! But I don't believe that happens ... and I don't see why the taxpayer should be subsidising anyone's leisure facilities.

If one person learning to swim in leisureland means someone less drowns then it's money very well spent.

challengemaster

gordongekko wrote: »

If one person learning to swim in leisureland means someone less drowns then it's money very well spent.

And how is it you're imagining that these people who cannot swim will meet their demise?

It's not that hard to avoid deep water if you're unable to swim.

cfeeneyinterior

challengemaster wrote: »

And how is it you're imagining that these people who cannot swim will meet their demise?

It's not that hard to avoid deep water if you're unable to swim.

Not all these people, just one. I think its as important as reading and writing. You have to learn how to swim. Perhaps if they changed the name from Leisureland to Swim school, you would think differently. We are an island

maki

challengemaster wrote: »

And how is it you're imagining that these people who cannot swim will meet their demise?

It's not that hard to avoid deep water if you're unable to swim.

Do you think that anyone who has ever drowned has actively and voluntarily entered deep water?

People can get blown into the river, get dragged out by the current at a beach, fall out of a boat, or any number of things really. Accidents happen.

I'm amazed by the amount of people who underestimate the value of being able to survive in a substance that this planet is mostly covered in.

challengemaster

cfeeneyinterior wrote: »

Not all these people, just one. I think its as important as reading and writing. You have to learn how to swim. Perhaps if they changed the name from Leisureland to Swim school, you would think differently. We are an island

I'm just making this point because personally I can't swim, and suffice to say as I'm writing this post, I haven't drowned yet. You do not HAVE to learn how to swim. Plenty of people never learn.

maki wrote: »

Do you think that anyone who has ever drowned has actively and voluntarily entered deep water?

People can get blown into the river, get dragged out by the current at a beach, fall out of a boat, or any number of things really. Accidents happen.

I'm amazed by the amount of people who underestimate the value of being able to survive in a substance that this planet is mostly covered in.

I think a lot have voluntarily put themselves in situations where they were at risk of it.

If you manage to "get dragged out by a current at a beach" - you were in the water. Unless you're blind, you don't really have an excuse for that one - it's pretty easy to see exactly where the edge of the water is at any time, and move when the tide comes in.

If you fall out of a boat, you have voluntarily ended up on a boat in the first place. If you're talking about a small boat, then I believe you'd be an idiot to not have a life jacket on, particularly if you cannot swim. If you're talking about a ferry - it is entirely possible to stay indoors for an entire ferry journey. Unless the ship sinks, there is no actual necessity to go outside at any point. It's a choice.

And I'd love to hear the statistics on being blown into a river. But yet again, if you've put yourself close enough to a river where there's no barriers up, to get magically blown into it, you've put yourself in that situation.

You're right, the planet is mostly covered in water. But you're severely over estimating the effort required to avoid deep water if you cannot swim, or rather, the amount of effort people have to go to to end up IN water.

cfeeneyinterior

challengemaster wrote: »

you're severely over estimating the effort required to avoid deep water if you cannot swim, or rather, the amount of effort people have to go to to end up IN water.

I think the effort and money spent in learning how to swim whilst being a child or an adult is alot less than spending your time having to avoid situations where you might get wet.....

This is getting silly. People meed to learn how to swim. As regards money being poured into it.....
http://www.advertiser.ie/galway/article/65690/council-row-over-disputed-claims-that-leisureland-is-losing-12000-a-week
"The perception is that Leisureland is some financial noose around the neck of Galway City Council but this is wholly incorrect and is unfair. The correct deficit figure for the Leisureland facility in 2012 was €399,000 and this included a bill for €78,500 for commercial rates which the present Government has decided to levy on local authority facilities, and it also includes a provision for legal fees of €140,000 for a case taken against Leisureland which we actually won, and this raises questions in itself. When the figure is netted out Leisureland operated a deficit of approximately €180,000 in 2012, which is an achievement in the context of the Public Service Obligation on Galway City Council to operate the facility and is in line with the average cost to the council of operating other community centres throughout the city.” Cllr Keane also told the chamber that for every €1 taken in 60 cent is paid out in wages."

Diabhal Beag

Are the staff still getting paid does anybody know?

Thargor

Diabhal Beag wrote: »

Are the staff still getting paid does anybody know?

They've been getting paid all along?

Mrs OBumble

cfeeneyinterior wrote: »

...in the context of the Public Service Obligation on Galway City Council to operate the facility and is in line with the average cost to the council of operating other community centres throughout the city.” Cllr Keane also told the chamber that for every €1 taken in 60 cent is paid out in wages."

Can you give us a link to something that defines a local authorities PSO to provide a learn-to-swim facility? And explain how Galway County Council meet it?

cfeeneyinterior

No, Im not bothered to be honest. I'm happy for my taxes to go to a facility such as leisureland. I personally think it is a great facility and I hope my kids will use it as much as I did in my youth. I would have no problem with it getting tax money.
Lots of sports get funding and grants.

Obviously there are people here who think it is a waste of money for people to learn how to swim and should pay it their own way. I have had a family member who drowned a good few years ago in a river drowning. Now I suppose they should have known better and got into difficulty.
However if they had been taught how to swim theywould still be alive today.

gordongekko

challengemaster wrote: »

I'm just making this point because personally I can't swim, and suffice to say as I'm writing this post, I haven't drowned yet. You do not HAVE to learn how to swim. Plenty of people never learn.



I think a lot have voluntarily put themselves in situations where they were at risk of it.

If you manage to "get dragged out by a current at a beach" - you were in the water. Unless you're blind, you don't really have an excuse for that one - it's pretty easy to see exactly where the edge of the water is at any time, and move when the tide comes in.

If you fall out of a boat, you have voluntarily ended up on a boat in the first place. If you're talking about a small boat, then I believe you'd be an idiot to not have a life jacket on, particularly if you cannot swim. If you're talking about a ferry - it is entirely possible to stay indoors for an entire ferry journey. Unless the ship sinks, there is no actual necessity to go outside at any point. It's a choice.

And I'd love to hear the statistics on being blown into a river. But yet again, if you've put yourself close enough to a river where there's no barriers up, to get magically blown into it, you've put yourself in that situation.

You're right, the planet is mostly covered in water. But you're severely over estimating the effort required to avoid deep water if you cannot swim, or rather, the amount of effort people have to go to to end up IN water.

Pretty pathetic argument. Next thing you will be claiming any pedestrian knocked down on a road was at fault as they can see where the footpath is and were not blown into the road. Accidents happen.

JohnCleary

I had the happiest days of my childhood swimming (and learning how to) in Leisureland. I'm happy to know i'm making some sort of a contribution to it, regardless if its loss-making.

Years ago, there used to be swim classes for hundreds of children per week at Leisureland (and still were until it closed). It's doing a lot more for society than just teaching kids how to swim.

The same people complaining about Leisureland are probably the same people who'd complain if they saw some lard-ass kid stuck infront of an XBox all day.... go figure.

buzz11

Diabhal Beag wrote: »

Are the staff still getting paid does anybody know?

Yes, I've been told by someone who works there that they are all being paid even if they aren't involved in the refurbishment. (i.e. they have little or nothing to do)