Highly respected writer and local resident Mr Tom McNab has a long memory regarding the New Lodge scheme and I am delighted to reproduce his letter of last Thursday 28th October 2010.

SIR-let me first express my admiration for the PoolTooSmall group , who have been a fine example of the Big Society. Let me also make what I hope is a final statement on the ASA position on a 50-metre pool.

When I brought my friend , ASA Chief Executive David Sparkes ,to meet with council officials some years back, it was to receive the best advice for the city. David was from the outset categorical in his belief that St.Albans could support a 50-metre pool- towns smaller and less prosperous than ours had done so,and he gave several examples,stressing that 50-metre pools invariably stimulated even greater demand for more water space.

It was clear to me even after that meeting that a 25-metre pool was a done deal. The Council was set on it , no matter what an authority like David Sparkes said. And I realised that the meeting was no more than tokenism. What I did not realise was that council officials would later claim that the non inclusion of a 50-metre pool in the ASA national strategy meant they had rejected it.

We are a rich community . We recently showed in supporting the cinema bid that we aspire to be the best in arts.Let us aspire to the same in sport .

 

TOM McNAB Hillside Road, St.Albans. 

PoolTooSmall agrees totally with Mr McNab . He substantiates our belief that the Main Pool size decision was a totally political one taken in 2005/6 and had nothing whatsoever to do with providing properly for the people's general swimming demand for the next 50 years.