COUNCILLORS are asking leisure centre users to park considerately following complaints from nearby residents about parking.
Residents of Roche Court and Parkway say parking outside their homes has become an increasing problem since work commenced on phase two of the new Washington Leisure Centre.
The centre, which features two water flumes, a six lane 25m pool and a learner pool with interactive water features, has proved hugely popular, with 87,000 attendances in its first four months.
A second phase of the project will see six all-weather state-of-the-art, 3rd Generation (3G) artificial grass, five-a-side football pitches and a 100 space car park which are set for completion in early 2016.
Councillor John Kelly Portfolio Holder for Public Health, Wellness and Culture, said: “It’s fantastic that Washington Leisure Centre is so popular but we’d ask users travelling there by car to show some consideration for nearby residents if they’re parking in residential streets ahead of the opening of the car park in the New Year.
“We’ve tried our very best to minimise disruption to users and the wider public from the beginning of this project. By building the facility in two phases we have substantially reduced the length of time users had to do without a centre. ”
“We completed phase one a month early and on budget. That momentum has continued as we’ve moved into phase two. We needed to complete the demolition of the old leisure centre before we could start work on the car park and outdoor pitches.
“But work is continuing at pace and users of the leisure centre can expect to see a new low level approach to the centre from Princess Anne Park and Glebe housing estate from early 2016, together with a 100 space car park, 3rd generation all-weather pitches and a new ramp and stairs to access the high level walkway to the Galleries.”
PC Gary Fee, from Northumbria Police, added: “We recognise inconsiderate parking can cause problems for other road users, pedestrians and local residents and work closely with our partners to ensure our roads are safe for everyone who uses them.”