The re-opening date for the Moseley Road Baths in Balsall Heath has been pushed back yet again, this time by a month to the end of February 2012.

Moseley Road Baths

This latest delay (the sixth) comes a year to the day since the pool first closed for minor repairs to a lintel in the rear door of Pool 2 (Pool 1 has been out of operation since 2003) and has been caused by the Council’s own bureaucratic procedures in releasing the money to do the next stage of work.

Cabinet Member for Leisure, Sport and Culture Cllr. Martin Mullaney stated on Friday that he hopes to have this money signed off within the next week: “Following recent work the basement is now clear of asbestos. If the report releasing the next stage of money is signed off next week, then the company installing the permanent structural scaffolding into the basement will move onto site on 16th January. Their work is expected to take between 4 to 5 weeks to complete.”

Mullaney meanwhile reported that during this latest closure extension, the badly flaking ceiling of Pool 2 is to be repainted. “This flaking was caused by the high humidity in the pool, which in turn was caused by the poor ventilation. When the pool is re-opened the ventilation will be significantly improved, since the mechanical issues in the ventilation fans have now been fixed. So hopefully, this flaking will not be a problem for a number of years. By re-painting the pool now – and the money for this will hopefully be signed off next week – this will prevent the possibilty of the pool being closed again later in the year should paint flakes fall into the pool.”

You can read more about the trials and tribulations surrounding Moseley Road Baths here