Carlisle’s Turkish Baths will be mothballed for the foreseeable future.
The city council’s executive met yesterday, Monday October 3, and agreed to temporarily mothball the facility.
Members took the decision after receiving an options report setting out the financial impact of the keeping the Turkish Baths operational after the transfer of swimming provision to The Sands Centre as part of a £27 million redevelopment.
This is planned to take place in late October – the Turkish Baths will remain open up until this point.
The Turkish Baths was scheduled to close in early 2023 to allow demolition to take place of the next door 1970s Pools. This will be included in the £20 million Station Gateway development, led by Cumbria County Council with support from the City Council and other partners.
The options paper set out the following costs:
- It will cost around £26,500 a month to keep the site operational. With the one off costs required, this is equivalent to at least £1,000 a day, for on average 20 – 25 visits per day.
- There are one off costs of up to £50,000 to be able to run the Turkish Bath’s as a standalone facility.
Councillor Stephen Higgs, portfolio holder for culture, heritage and leisure, said: “This wasn’t an easy decision to make. Keeping the site open would result in significant costs to the council and our local taxpayers.
“Although we appreciate the importance of the building and have invested a lot to keep it running, we need to take into account the rising costs of utilities, building maintenance and operational maintenance.
“We also need to factor in the investment needed to make the site stand-alone from The Pools. This work would be essential to make the site DDA compliant and provide safe exit routes in the event of a fire.
“We would be incurring substantial costs to keep the site open as a standalone facility for only a few months. This would not be a good use of public money.”
One of 12 similar facilities still operating in the UK, the Grade II listed building on James Street was completed in 1909 and is managed by GLL on behalf of Carlisle City Council.
A campaign group set up to save the baths wants to transform it into a health and wellbeing centre.
From April, Carlisle City Council will cease to exist, and Cumberland Council will take control of the council’s assets which will include the Turkish Baths.
Campaigners have slammed the council’s decision. Read more here.
