Rowing facilities at the sport’s Scottish headquarters in Strathclyde Park are set to be greatly enhanced by the construction of a new million pound boathouse at Strathclyde Park.
A proposal submitted by Edinburgh University is set to be approved by North Lanarkshire Council at a planning meeting this evening since its plans are very much in line with the local authority’s vision for the development of facilities on the site.
Two options have been proposed, one a relatively modest three bay storage building estimated at a cost of £1 million and the other more elaborate at £1 .65 million, both of them incorporating onshore areas and a jetty within their designs and retaining the capacity to be expand at a later date.
Whichever is ultimately chosen will sit alongside the existing rowing academy which was built alongside the watersports centre 14 years ago to become a centre for Scottish rowing which was in keeping with the original plans for Strathclyde Country Park as a whole.
Edinburgh University moved its base there three years ago, renting boatshed space on the west wing of the watersports centre. That has been seen as a major success for all parties with an upsurge in use of the loch and success at major rowing events, including the prestigious Henley Regatta, for University teams, contributing to the club becoming the first in Scotland to be officially recognised as a high performance centre by GB Rowing.
This development is consequently seen as vital as a direct consequence of the growth of the sport, with other clubs and organisations based at the loch having also developed to the extent that the watersports centre indoor facilities are being used to capacity at a time when the University’s ambitions in terms of development and expansion mean there is now a need for further rowing craft storage within the park, while the increased capacity will have revenue benefits for the local authority.
Officials are consequently confident that there will be approval of what looks like a beneficial proposal for all parties and the prospect has been welcomed by Jim Logue, leader of North Lanarkshire Council.
“Strathclyde Park is a world-class watersports venue and our partnership with one of the leading rowing squads in Europe underlines that,” he observed.
“We are delighted to be able to strengthen our sporting links with the University of Edinburgh’s Rowing Academy, which could increase use of the loch and watersports centre.
“Rowing is an increasing popular sport and one which provided great medal success at the Rio Olympics. In North Lanarkshire, we have an exceptional commitment to sport and physical activity and this development is allied to the significant investment in the park as we prepare to host the rowing and triathlon events for the 2018 European Sports Championships.
“Strathclyde Park was a Proud Host Venue for Glasgow 2014 and has hosted three Commonwealth Rowing Championships. All these developments boost tourism and the local economy and can help to inspire our young people to take part in sport. We look forward to working closely with the University of Edinburgh to help further develop their plans.”
A spokesperson for the University of Edinburgh meanwhile explained that the plan is a demonstration of its commitment to building on its recent successes, saying:
“We value our excellent partnership with North Lanarkshire Council and are very pleased that our rowing squad is able to make us of the facilities at Strathclyde Park.
“There is still substantial work to be done, but the support of the council is to be welcomed as we continue to develop more fully our plans to enhance the facilities at Strathclyde Park.”
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