Swindon Indoor Snow News

The highest indoor ice climbing wall will be a feature of the revamped Oasis leisure centre in Swindon, England which is due to re-open in 2014.

Swindon Council has selected property developer Moirai Capital Investments to work on the £65m project which will first see the centre’s existing facilities overhauled, and then new ones, including an indoor ski slope, added.

The aim is to convert the complex from a local leisure centre to a tourism attraction employing more than 1500 people and attracting up to four million customers annually.

“I think there will be people who do come from further afield who would like to climb the tallest indoor ice climbing wall in the world,” said a local councillor, “And while we don’t anticipate thousands of people coming to do it, it’s something that can put Swindon on the map in the climbing community.”

The BBC reports that...

An indoor slope is being planned as part of a £65 million redevelopment of Swindon's Oasis Leisure Centre.

Swindon Borough Council is negotiating with Moirai Capital Investment Ltd to bring a ski slope, expanded water park and concert arena to the town, by 2014.

The council said it cannot afford the refurbishment and has offered a 999 year lease on the centre in exchange.

Councillor Rod Bluh said: "The sort of scale of investment we're seeing here can only come from the private sector."

Conservative Mr Bluh, leader of the council, said the development will be a "major regional leisure destination" attracting an estimated 4m visitors a year.

"We're talking about 1,700 jobs in total of which 1,000 will be permanent," he said.

"This is really, really exciting news for Swindon - we're talking about a complete revamp of the Oasis which has been a critical factor in all of this because it's an ageing building and the roof is failing.

"And this is not going to get done any other way - if we were to wait for council resources to deal with it we'd be waiting for a very long time."

Martin Barber, chairman of Moirai, said Swindon was "the perfect site" for a new snow dome.

"We've built three of these before one in Milton Keynes, one in Castleford and another one in Braehead," he said.

"And I've been looking for years for one that can draw from the west side of London and the south and also from Bristol and this is the perfect site."

Refurbishment of the existing Oasis centre, including replacing the dome roof, is due to be completed in the first 12 to 18 months.

More at Swindon.gov.uk.

The Swindon Advertiser reports;

A major project to turn the run-down Oasis Leisure Centre into a regional leisure destination will bring about 1,700 jobs to Swindon’s economy.

Swindon Council has identified a preferred developer that would refurbish the old centre and later provide other leisure facilities at the site, including a snowdome and an arena.

And the council is also considering an option to build a £4m pedestrian bridge that would link the Oasis to the town centre over the railway line.

Coun Keith Williams, cabinet member for leisure and corporate services, revealed the initial information ahead of the full details, including the developer’s name, being announced by the council on Tuesday.

He said the aim of the project was to restore the faded centre to its former glory, when the facility drew people from far and wide.

He said: “This really is one of those great moments we will look back upon.

“We are putting every effort in. An awful lot of time has been put into this to make sure that the elements around this are correct.

“This is going to be really great for Swindon in the same way the Oasis was years ago.

“The people of Swindon will have something to look forward to and they will enjoy when it arrives.

“As councillors we live in Swindon, we raise our families in Swindon, and we want what’s best for Swindon. Everyone is supportive of this.

“This is a great opportunity. This is a real win-win-win opportunity: Win for the people of Swindon, win for the developer and win for the council.”

The Oasis, in North Star Avenue, has a lagoon swimming pool with water slides and a wave machine, a gym, a sports hall, indoor bowling, squash courts and outdoor pitches. It also hosts concerts.

Just over a year ago, the council announced it was inviting companies to redevelop the crumbling site. Developers were offered the chance to either refurbish the existing centre or build a new one altogether.

Out of the 22 companies which expressed an interest, three were shortlisted to give presentations on their proposals. These were assessed on a point-scoring exercise and a preferred developer was chosen.

Under the outline plans, the project would take place in phases. The developer would refurbish the existing facilities by the end of 2013.An arena and other facilities would then be built on the site, with the snowdome expected to be operational by 2015.

Plans for Swindon’s own snow dome were first mooted in 2004, but the project seemed to fizzle out until last year when the council invited businesses interested in redeveloping the site to come forward.

If the centre is completed, it will bring about 1,700 jobs to the local economy, and the council hopes two-thirds of the users would come from outside of Swindon.

Coun Williams said the developer would initially lease the land from the council, but after the project is completed, the freehold will be transferred to a trust, which would have tax benefits.

He added that the council would pay very little for the project and would also benefit because it would no longer have to subsidise the facility.

The report detailing the full plans will be officially presented to Cabinet on Wednesday, February 15. The full council will need to approve the project.

From Swindon Advertiser.

Swindon Council is planning to sell off the Oasis Leisure Centre, it has been revealed.

Companies are being invited to redevelop the crumbling centre, which is nearing the end of its operational life.

It wants to see the site turned into a regional leisure destination with an events arena, an indoor snow dome or an ice rink.

THE indoor snow slope plan for North Star, first revealed by the Adver last March, is still on the cards.

Coun Keith Williams, cabinet member for leisure and corporate services, admitted yesterday that the ambitious plan was very much in their sights.

“It is something which is still being pursued,” he said. “We are still discussing it, and there are a number of other things out there as well which we are considering.”

Urban Ski have been in discussions with Swindon Borough Council about the idea since July 2007. They want to create an indoor Snowdome which could house six slopes to be used by both skiers and snowboarders.

There will be a bob-sleigh run, family snow-play and tobogganing, a number of mountain-chalet restaurants, a ski club and ski school and a 1,200 capacity car park.

If built the snow dome would have 'comfortable' ski conditions in a temperature of plus 10 degrees centigrade, there would be a 175m diameter ski deck with a descent of 13 storeys – which would provide an equivalent straight-down ski run of 650m.

When talks begun between Urban Ski and Swindon Borough Council, the company was asked to look into if the North Star site could comfortably accommodate the Snowdome and the proposed university.

Its master planners concluded that the two facilities could easily fit onto the available site – with a larger than expected buffer zone planned between the two, style restaurants, a ski club and ski school and a 1,200 capacity car park.

When the Adver first reported the story, a spokesman for Urban Ski said: “The company’s aim is to provide a unique Snow Dome experience, a one-stop destination for alpine sports and leisure that will become an international attraction bringing thousands of visitors, of all ages, the year round.

“The Snow Dome will help regenerate this area of Swindon by developing the site, providing jobs and increasing the use of services.”

The nearest ski centre with similar facilities earmarked for Swindon in the Xscape centre in Milton Keynes.

[From Swindon Advertiser]

Swindon Council plans to promote the town as a tourist destination with a mixture of ancient landmarks and new attractions, such as a snowdome or major concert venue.

Talks on bringing a giant indoor slope to Swindon have been under way for 18 months, it has been revealed. Directors of the company behind the audacious plan have told the Advertiser that they started negotiations with Swindon Council on the North Star site in July 2007.

Read the full article on ThisIsWiltshire and for more information on the Ski-Trac/SnowVolution slope, visit Urban-Ski.com

Swindon's skyline could one day have a new landmark - a 250-foot indoor slope.

The state-of-the-art facility could be the only one in the country and one of just a handful in the world.

Swindon Council has had talks with Urban Ski, which is searching for sites worldwide for their indoor slopes, about housing the complex on the site of the Oasis leisure centre at North Star.

The slope itself would be powered by electro-magnets which would carry the user down and up the slopes without the use of a ski lift.

The slope would be kept at room temperature but would pass through refrigerated fake mountains to keep the snow from melting.

Urban Ski's project would be unique in its use of electro-magnets instead of a ski lift, meaning the user never ne eds to leave the snow.

Editor: This sounds very much like a Ski Trac style slope. These have been proposed for many places (including the Millennium Dome), but never yet managed to actually be built.

You can read the full article at the Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard.

Swindon has long been on the cards for an indoor snow slope, with plans coming and going and the council reportedly interested in such a scheme if a suitable developer came forward. However, the information we have about the final £1bn regeneration plans make no mention of snow, so you can pretty mch bet that means there won't be any. Another one bites the dust.

Leisure Opportunities reports that;

Swindon regeneration framework announced

The New Swindon Company has unveiled £1bn regeneration plans to transform the town centre – with a quarter of the scheme allocated to leisure and retail.

According to the framework, around 100,000sq m of the total area of 400,000sq m will be reserved for retail and leisure The Arena will provide a mix of recreational facilities and act as the focal point for the new town centre with the town’s cultural facilities located along The Promenade development.

Peter Andrews, chief executive of The New Swindon Company, hopes the publication of the framework will attract private investment in the town to support and expand the initiative.

He said: “There have been many grand plans for Swindon but we are focused on delivery. The Publication of the regeneration framework very clearly shows that Swindon is open for business and is moving forward in the revitalisation of the town.”

The New Swindon Company is jointly funded by Swindon Borough Council, South West of England Regional Development Agency and English Partnerships.

By Gina.

I've been snooping around for some more info on the possible Swindon site and its seems things have come to halt - for the time being. My contact at Swindon Council would not tell me who the company was that had enquired about land for use for an indoor slope. What he did say is that having recieved the enquiry Swindon Council gave a very positive response making it clear that they would be interested in a slope for Swindon and arranging land for it. At present Swindon Council have not recieved any response back from the interested company.

The South is in dire need of an indoor slope. With the Beckton slope half completed, but the site abandoned and current plans unclear, the only other likely candidate is Wycombe Summit. The management there expect to go indoors at some stage, they just don't know when.

This is Wiltshire reports:

Town may be set to get snow fun centre
SWINDON could be set for snow all year round.

A private developer is considering building a vast indoor snow centre in the town ­featuring real frozen water.

The dome, designed for all kinds of snow-based activities, including skiing, snowboarding and ice-skating, could expect to attract hundreds of thousands of visitors every year.

Swindon Council says it will find out within the next few weeks whether the town has been short-listed as a possible site for the new dome.

Several other towns and cities are believed to be vying for the project.

Coun Justin Tomlinson (Con, Abbey Meads), who is the lead member for cultural services and recreation, said: "A company has said it would consider building the dome and share the revenue with the council.

"There's no way we could afford to buy one.

"But we have the opportunity to get one built at no risk to the council.

"The snow dome would need to attract people from far and wide but, as a logistical centre, Swindon is perfect.

"We are not afraid to talk to anybody and everybody to improve services and we will go that extra mile to attract leisure facilities that give good value."

There are currently only three major snow domes in the country ­ in Milton Keynes, Tamworth in Staffordshire, and Castleford in West Yorkshire.

The Tamworth-based Snowdome, which features a 170m-long slope, attracts about 250,000 people a year.

Marketing director Gary Baker said it gave people a chance to try sports they might otherwise never get the chance to do.

"It's about bringing the mountain to the people," he said.

But he also warned that undertaking such a project could be risky.

"It's a purpose-built building and if it goes wrong you can't exactly turn it into a bingo hall," he said.

We have our Reporterz on it who are in contact with the council. There is a meeting today to discuss the project so we could have some more details by Tuesday or Wednesday next week.

So what is happening with the potential site in Swindon? Sorry to disappoint you all but it looks like the Southern Development Area is going to be houses and a sports centre (y'know for nice sports like aerobics and tennis and for play groups and stuff like that). We believe the Snow dome was intended as part of the new stadium.

"The western corner of the site, once considered as the location for a new stadium for Swindon Town Football Club, has been allocated for employment use and a 1,000 space park and ride. It is hoped the employment land will help Swindon’s economic prosperity in the future." (from Swindon Business news magazine)

No stadium, no snow dome. Oh well, seems like Swindon will have plenty more jobs but no decent pastimes to spend all that extra income on!!

In a recent article, it was revealed that the developers for the Swindon sports complex are turned off by the cost of the indoor snow dome. Terry Brady says:

Things like the multiplex cinema and nightclubs are still on the agenda but we have to think again about the indoor snow dome as the one at Milton Keynes has not proved particularly viable.

Perhaps it would be worth their while examining some of the cheaper indoor snow alternatives, such as those used in Germany and perhaps even Snowtime UK's product used at the Medway Snowbowl. Indoor slopes do not need to be expensive to be successful, it all depends on your point of view - are you creating a "winter sports experience" or providing a sporting venue. A sporting venue does not need any bells and whistles.

See This Is Wiltshire for full article.

A new sports stadium proposed for Swindon is to have a snowdome. The plans are backed by Terry Brady, the financial saviour of Swindon Town FC.
More from Swindon Link