PLANS for a new sports and leisure park for Winchester have reached a critical phase, with councillors asking civic chiefs to sign of the design framework.

It follows draft plans for the 24-hectare site – which will unite the city’s sport facilities around the new leisure centre in Bar End – being presented to members of the public at a meeting last week.

Councillors on the leisure centre committee discussed the draft design framework on Wednesday evening, with Winchester City Council's Cabinet set to debate it and possibly approve it at a meeting on June 6.

As previously reported, the sports and leisure park will incorporate the Garrison Ground, KGV playing field, the depot site and the £38 million leisure centre, replacing the run down River Park Leisure Centre.

The centre will controversially include the eight-court sports hall – rather than 12 – and a 50m swimming pool that can be divided, plus a learner pool and a water play area.

It will also have a ‘clip and climb’ facility, four squash courts, a hydrotherapy suite and eight treatment rooms, two large studios, a spin studio and 200-station gym.

The sports and leisure park would also seek to “strengthen the relationship with the adjacent Winchester Sports Stadium”, according to the report due to go before the committee last night, and would connect with the rest of the city through a network of pathways and cycle routes.

In addition the draft design framework includes the creation of an outdoor gym, playing pitches and other recreation facilities.

Following the public meeting last week, finance portfolio holder Cllr Guy Ashton said: “This was a very constructive meeting that once again has shown the council continues to listen intently and respond to local people and organisations.

“I really do thank everyone for their input because it has been and continues to be hugely influential.

“This new park will be a place the whole community can enjoy, whether they aspire to be a great athlete, meet their friends for a coffee or just go for a walk. It’s a place for everyone and I’m excited by the plans.”

Emma Back, chief executive of Winchester Sport Art and Leisure Trust (Salt) added that she was pleased to see the plans including much of Salt’s vision for a “better sporting future for Winchester”.

However, Ms Back expressed concerns over a lack of facilities for children. She said: “I think the council needs to decide if it’s going to address the need. If not, it needs to decide how those needs are going to be met.”

Ms Back also expressed concerns over the “access issue” to Winchester Sports Stadium via Milland Road, which, she said, would make it more difficult for pedestrians to access the site. “I think the community is not getting the best deal,” she added.

As the framework progresses, it was still not clear how the depot site would be used. A previous committee heard that feedback suggested creating a convenience store.

Cllr Ashton said that the council had taken on the feedback and added the principles for the depot had been set out in the design framework.

They include uses that would be not generate much traffic and would have a low parking requirement. Cllr Ashton said at the meeting in March that no deals had been done yet for the depot site.

Proposals were also floated in November last year to create a privately funded, £20 million permanent ice arena on the site by Aethos Development Ltd.

However, a Winchester City Council spokesman responded at the time by saying: “The council-owned depot site is not currently on the market and no negotiations have taken place with Aethos Development.”

Last week, Winchester Ice Sport Association secretary Edna Boden took to the streets of Winchester to drum up support. She told the Chronicle: “People are asking about the leisure centre and how it would compliment that, and a lot of people are telling us there’s a lack of things for young people to do in the city and an ice rink would help to alleviate that.

“The leisure centre scheme has reached a crucial point and we want to see where that goes because the depot site is the perfect place for a rink.”

More questions were asked about the possibility of an ice rink at Wednesday's meeting, but no further was made.

According to Wednesday's report, the leisure centre will be the first part of the site to be completed, with the building expected to be completed in 2021, and £6 million of investment coming from Winchester University, £1.1m coming from charity The Pinder Trust, and £1m allocated by Hampshire County Council.

Work will then take place over the longer term to complete the sports and leisure park. A full business case is expected in early 2019 and a planning application is due to be submitted in the coming weeks.

See letters on page 23 of Thursday's Hampshire Chronicle and let us know what you think of the plans by writing to letters@hampshirechronicle.co.uk.