Rec centre demolition date delay

Councillor ‘taken aback’ at timeline

- KATHRYN ANDERSON

The demolition of the old Blairgowrie Recreation Centre has been pushed back until autumn 2026 to allow more time for issues with the £36 million new facility to be resolved.

Blairgowrie and Glens ward councillor Caroline Shiers was “taken aback” when she learned the news at a council committee meeting.

The replacement recreation centre finally opened on August 29, 2025, after a 34-week delay - largely due to problems with the new pool leaking - but further problems have arisen since the opening resulting in temporary closures.

In September Perth & Kinross Council's Scrutiny and Performance Committee was told the old centre’s demolition had been delayed six months just in case it needed to reopen as a backup. However, on Wednesday, November 26 PKC’s Finance and Resources Committee was told the demolition has been further delayed until autumn 2026.

Within days of the new centre opening, there was an issue with the pool hoist. Then on September 8 the pool was closed due to a technical issue.

And on November 4 the whole centre was closed due to an issue with no running water.