Sport Centre proposals cross planning finish line

Plans for the new £12 million Moray Sports Centre have been given the go ahead by Moray Council at a planning committee meeting held this week.

Funded by local charity Moray Sports Foundation, the sports centre, covering 12 acres, will have facilities for many different sports including gymnastics, tennis and basketball.

Located in the heart of the Elgin South Village, with its 2,500 homes and two new schools, Moray Sports Centre will become the central hub of the community offering meeting rooms, a coffee shop, with soft play area, playgrounds and external seating for outdoor events such as BBQ’s.

Kathryn Evans CEO for Moray Sports Centre could not be happier with the outcome.

She said: “Approval of the Sports Centre is the next piece of the puzzle we’ve been waiting for. As a charity, we rely quite heavily on fundraising to make the Moray Sports Centre a reality. Planning consent allows organisations such as SportScotland to allocate funding which until now they have been unable to do.”

Moray Sports Centre have been raising awareness of the charity and fundraising in Moray for the past 12 months, with over £2 million already raised through donations and grants.

Admin and events coordinator, Gill Evans said “It’s been great to get out into the community and engage with people. There is such a positive buzz about the opportunities the sports centre will bring. People are eager to learn what’s going to be available at the Sports Centre.”

She added. “Once open, Moray Sports Centre will be at the heart of the new Elgin South Village. Bringing 100 full-time job opportunities, offering the new schools state of the art sporting facilities and bringing the community together.”

Scotland’s leading Construction Company, Morrison Construction, have been contracted to carry out the build which the firm has predicted will create approximately 90 jobs for the lifetime of the project.

Work will start on site for the sports centre at the earliest opportunity and is scheduled to be open to the public early 2019.