Vale of Glamorgan Council has announced they will be removing Barry Leisure Centre's iconic water slide in favour of a new outdoor workout area.
The closure announcement came during a meeting where resident Mr M Lock queried the council's plans to reopen the slide.
Minutes from a meeting on July 26 state that he asked the council: "The pool slide at Barry Leisure centre was once a main attraction and is now a derelict eyesore. Could the Council explain why it's not been maintained and could it be reopened?"
Unfortunately, Councillor Kathryn McCaffer, the Cabinet Member for Leisure, Arts and Culture, confirmed the hydro slide would not be reopening.
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She explained: "Unfortunately, despite regular maintenance at the time, the Hydroslide at Barry Leisure Centre developed a number of faults due to its age, and was deemed beyond repair and was due to be removed in the next few weeks.
"The area where the Hydroslide was located was being repurposed as a new outdoor fitness area to assist in the recovery from the effects of Covid-19 on the leisure centre.
"It was hoped that this repurposed area would attract new customers as well as providing an attractive new fitness zone to existing customers."
Barry Leisure centre confirmed the news on their Facebook page with a more detailed plan for their workout area.
Residents were disappointed with the announcement. One wrote: "I hope they are going to look to install a new flume rather than just take the old one away! Families don’t swim in Barry as much since that was left to fall into disrepair."
The leisure centre confirmed they would not be replacing the slide, and explained: "We will not be looking to replace the slide. This is due to many factors."
However, the council have confirmed they are still looking for ways to entertain younger pool users. Cllr McCaffer stated: "A large pool inflatable, taking the form of an obstacle course, was purchased as a replacement for the hydroslide and proved extremely popular with visitors to Barry Leisure Centre.
"Sadly, at present, the pool inflatable was not being used due to the wider operational issues associated with complying with the current covid regulations, especially the additional cleaning requirements necessary throughout the centre. These ‘inflatable sessions’ would however be reinstated as soon as possible."
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