Swiss Cottage Leisure Centre opens doors

Date:   17/03/06

What: PRESS BRIEFING for journalists led by Camden Council's Director of Culture and Environment, Peter Bishop
When: 17 March: 2pm, Events Room on Ground Floor, Swiss Cottage Central
Library, 88 Avenue Road, London, NW3 3HA.
Contact on
the day: Jason Grimsley. Please RSVP to confirm attendance.

What: CEREMONY to officially open Swiss Cottage Leisure Centre, with Camden
Council's Executive Member for Culture, Cllr Phil Turner, and founder of the Hampstead Theatre, James Roose-Evans.
When: 18 March: Please arrive at 3:30pm, for the ceremony at 4pm
Where: Meet at Swiss Cottage Library, 88 Avenue Road, London, NW3 3HA, to be taken over to the ceremony poolside at Swiss Cottage Leisure Centre.
Contact on the day: Jason Grimsley. Please RSVP to confirm attendance.

Details of other photo opportunities are at the bottom of this release.

Swiss Cottage Leisure Centre will open on 18 March - marking the culmination of a project that has brought together a range of community facilities to create a new public space in north London.

Camden Council's objective was to regenerate the huge site at Avenue Road, NW3, using high architectural quality and urban design to provide top-quality facilities and a public space that met the needs of the local community.

The £85m Swiss Cottage redevelopment integrates leisure, community and learning facilities with a park and housing.

Farrells was the lead architect for the leisure centre, and collaborated with S&P Architects on the interior design. It brings together high quality architecture with modern leisure and sports facilities for the public.

The public will get their first chance to see Swiss Cottage Leisure Centre for themselves when the centre throws open its doors from 10am to 6pm on 18 March. As well as tours of the leisure centre, a day of arts and sports activities is also planned across the site to celebrate it opening. The public will be able to use the centre from 20 March.

The development of the whole site was Camden Council's vision, but the council appointed Farrells as lead masterplanners. Among the site's features are:

• The Basil Spence-designed Grade II listed Swiss Cottage Central Library, which has had an award-winning refurbishment
• A new park featuring a water feature designed by Gustafson Porter, with an all weather football pitch and children's playground
• 42 units of affordable housing, including 22 homes built on top of Swiss Cottage Leisure Centre and nicknamed the 'Street In The Sky'
• 131 units of private housing at Visage designed by architects S & P
• The new Hampstead Theatre, a new community centre, doctor's surgery and Swiss Cottage Market

The leisure centre, community centre, doctor's surgery and affordable housing have all been built at no cost to Camden Council taxpayers through the public private partnership between the council and developers Barratt/Dawnay Day.

Camden Council's Executive Member for Culture, Cllr Phil Turner, said:

"With its completion, Camden Council's vision of regenerating Swiss Cottage with high-quality community, cultural and leisure facilities, has been realised.

"The leisure centre is a beautifully-designed building that will also provide first class sports and fitness amenities. The redevelopment has also provided affordable housing, a community centre, a doctor's surgery and a refurbished library. I am particularly proud that these facilities have been delivered at good value for taxpayers."

Sir Terry Farrell said:

"We have relished the opportunity to work with Camden Council to create a new cultural heart for Swiss Cottage. Our original concept for a civic-cultural centre at Swiss Cottage has been realised.

"The masterplan allocates the many user groups efficiently across the site, within well-formed open spaces - which are significantly larger than other prominent London squares and spaces such as Berkeley and Grosvenor Squares.

"New routes through the scheme for Adelaide Road, a street between the library and leisure building and a mews adjacent to the residential terrace have reinforced the site's permeability, creating improved physical and visual links around the centre and surrounding areas."

Notes for Editors:

Camden Council's new leisure centre replaced an ageing '60s building. Facilities include a County-standard 25m eight-lane pool with 200 spectator seats for competitions and a 20m training pool, a huge climbing wall, a gym that is around four times bigger than previously, a multi-purpose sports hall, squash courts, special purpose meeting rooms and a crèche, soft play area and café.

A school sports day is planned for 17 March.

Among the events planned for 18 March are:

• From 10am: tours of Swiss Cottage Leisure Centre
• From 11am-3pm: 'The Doberman Family' performance art, in Eton Avenue Market
• At 12noon: Arsenal Ladies FC players and a Kick Racism out of Football display at the all-weather pitch.
• At 1pm: an interactive soap opera, Swiss06, at the Hampstead Theatre
• At 4pm: A trophy presentation for teams competing the football tournament, with cake-cutting and speeches by Camden Council's Executive Member for Culture, Cllr Phil Turner and the founder of the Hampstead Theatre, James Roose-Evans, by the pool in the leisure centre.
• At 6:30pm: an acrobatic and fireworks performance by the BUREAU of SILLY iDEAS, Eton Avenue
• Throughout the day: A football tournament and sports displays

Opening day events are part of a month of celebration running from 1 to 31 March. The full March programme can be accessed at: www.camden.gov.uk/swisscottage

Ref Code:   06/086
Contact:
    

Jason Grimsley

020 7974 5238

jason.grimsley@camden.gov.uk