£29m Shrewsbury Sports Village revamp to be placed 'on hold' as Shropshire Council reviews ALL capital projects
A flagship £29 million scheme to revamp a Shrewsbury leisure centre is set to be placed on hold after cash-strapped Shropshire Council confirmed all of its capital projects are now under review.
The financial crisis at Shropshire Council has seen the authority reassess its plans for all spending on its major projects.
That includes the revamp of Shrewsbury Sports Village, budgeted at £29m, as well as any potential plans for Whitchurch Civic Centre which has been closed since 2023 when reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) was found in the roof.
The decision has been taken because of the council's overall budget gap, with senior councillors saying it would not be responsible to approve further borrowing to pay for projects while the authority wrestles with balancing its budget.
The council is currently in the process of applying to the Government for permission to borrow around £200m to cover budget shortfalls for this year and next.
The recommendation will go before the council's cabinet next week.
Addressing the decision Liberal Democrat council leader Heather Kidd said: "While our spend on capital projects comes from our capital budget – money which can only be spent on big, one-off projects that create or improve assets and infrastructure, rather than funding the delivery of services – we still need to think carefully about how we spend it and whether it’s right to borrow more now which will put further pressure on our budgets.
