London Borough of Ealing plan to redevelop the current Gurnell Leisure Centre and build a large residential development on the current site, which is within the Brent River Park and is owned by the borough. It's on the flood plain and is designated as Metropolitan Open Land (MOL) which is afforded the same degree of protection as Green Belt.
The leisure centre will be closed for almost three years while the development takes place.
The council claim that they do not have sufficient funds to pay for the new centre and will be allowing a private developer to build on the site in return for a yet undisclosed fee. The September 2019 consultation presentation had no financial details; however, we understand that the development isn’t cost neutral to the council.
The entire residential part of the development will consist of 612 flats across 6 tower blocks ranging between 6, 10, 13, 15 and 17 storeys - this could equate to around 1,700 people living in the development. The local residents support the need for the leisure centre to be either refurbished or redeveloped and recognise that there is a cost associated with this. They are also supportive of the provision of Affordable Housing, and sustainable progressive developments. However, several concerns have been raised about this development, so this group has been formed to represent the local people.