Daily Echo - Civil Service chiefs' no to fitness club http://archive.dailyecho.co.uk/2005/2/10/11972.

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CIVIL SERVICE CHIEFS' NO TO FITNESS CLUB

From the archive, first published Thursday 10th Feb 2005.

CIVIL Service bosses have ruled a fitness club out of the running to buy one of the last remaining pieces of city grassland.
But they are very close to agreeing a deal for an eight-acre Shirley site with a mystery buyer - and say the futureuse is "a
matter
for the new owners and the planning authorities".
It was feared that the former Civil Service sports ground, pictured, between Malmes-bury Road and Stafford Road, could
be sold to fitness club ROKO.
Three civil service sites in England, including one in Portsmouth, have been sold to exclusive gym ROKO, which operates
swimming pools, health spas, beauty salons and sports bars at the sites.
But in a letter to Alan Whitehead MP, Civil Service Sports Council chairman Sir Andrew Turnbull said: "Ideally we would
like to redevelop all our sites into ROKO clubs. Unfortunately, the Southampton site was not thought to be suitable.
"In these circumstances, CSSC's policy is to dispose of the site for the best value to release money to fund the building of
other ROKO clubs."
He added: "We have recently sought informal tenders and believe that we are now close to agreeing a sale. As to the
future use of the site, that is a matter for the new owners and the planning authorities."
Cevn Vibert, from Freemantle and Shirley Community Association, said: "It is good news that the land won't be sold to
ROKO because we strongly suspected it might. That would not have been good for the community, in an area which
already has several gyms.
"But the CSSC could still be selling to another sports club - or to another form of developer."
The land, which was put up for sale last summer, has been at the centre of a campaign to stave off the property
developers.
Campaigners wanted it handed over to residents so it could become a park with tennis courts, a play area, a jogging trail
and a wildlife area.
But bosses at the Civil Service Sports Association have refused to meet with the group, instead pressing ahead with the
sale of the plot.

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