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ROKO takeover approved


THE controversial council takeover of Bournemouth's luxury fitness club Roko was approved last night (Tuesday).

A meeting of the full council backed the £6.9m plan to buy out and expand the centre.

The shock plan has disgruntled some members who told the Echo they do not want it to become a “cheap” council club.

Cllr Anne Rey, Throop and Muscliff, said: “A few have contacted me to say they should have been consulted and they are worried it will not be well looked after.”

Negotiations to take over Roko in Manor Farm Road had been going on for over a year before they were revealed last month. The sale will go ahead on July 1.

Leader of the Tory-run council Stephen MacLoughlin said: “There are no ideological hang ups for us in taking over a private club. What we are interested in is getting the best deal for the council tax payers and the public.”

He said like the highly successful and award winning Littledown Centre it would cater for people from all backgrounds.

The council has wanted a sports centre in north Bournemouth for years and he said the deal had been a tremendous opportunity to achieve that, save money and improve health.

Opposition councillors backed the plan. It will save spending £11m on a new build next to Kings High School.

Lib Dem leader Cllr Claire Smith, Kinson North, said: “It’s not as central as we hoped for but it’s a good compromise.”

Deputy leader Cllr John Beesley said no decision has been made on the Kings High site. Ward councillors would oppose new housing.

Casual users can use Roko from October.

Comments(29)

pete woodley says...
10:16pm Tue 9 Jun 09

Now wait for the moaners to come on here.

Big Aussie Fib says...
5:52am Wed 10 Jun 09

No need for any moaners Pete, you got there first.

John T says...
7:04am Wed 10 Jun 09

This must be great news for Bournemouth taxpayers, like pete woodley.
Hope the Council don't take away your bus pass to pay for it, othewrwise we will all have to suffer even more of your moans when you are confined to a home.

Cazzam says...
9:18am Wed 10 Jun 09

Great news. Anyone whose been to the pool at Kinson will know we desperately need better facilities in this area. People have been telling the Council for years that its what we need and now were getting it. Brilliant!

Aviewoneverything says...
10:03am Wed 10 Jun 09

I hope they improve the pool. When I was a ROKO member the pool was nothing more than a waist deep puddle.

natureman says...
11:11am Wed 10 Jun 09

I feel Cllr Anne Ray has a problem with her nose as the stench from Throop and Muscliff is far greater than that of West Howe, as a West Howe resident I own my own house, car and have not one single debt, how many of her ward members can say the same, I also do not rob local tax payers to pay my expenses.
I would imagine that the majority of West Howe residents are certainly more entitled to use the club than the "better than you" people she seems to represent.
Come on West Howe nows the time to get the bows and arrows out and show this eliteist club what we are about.

natureman says...
11:11am Wed 10 Jun 09

I feel Cllr Anne Ray has a problem with her nose as the stench from Throop and Muscliff is far greater than that of West Howe, as a West Howe resident I own my own house, car and have not one single debt, how many of her ward members can say the same, I also do not rob local tax payers to pay my expenses.
I would imagine that the majority of West Howe residents are certainly more entitled to use the club than the "better than you" people she seems to represent.
Come on West Howe nows the time to get the bows and arrows out and show this eliteist club what we are about.

sheldrake says...
11:24am Wed 10 Jun 09

How dare Cllr Anne Rey say she has concerns with the club attracting people from West Howe,my dear you find undesirable people in every area in Bournemouth not just West Howe. I think people who are worse are those that think they are better than everyone else.

Geoff-Kinson says...
11:31am Wed 10 Jun 09

I do wish a few of the posters who have been critical of Cllr Rey would read what was actually said by her-
Cllr Anne Rey, Throop and Muscliff, said: “A few have contacted me to say they should have been consulted and they are worried it will not be well looked after.”

She said their concerns included the club now attracting people from West Howe.

Where does it say that Cllr Rey had concerns ?

Emulated says...
12:47pm Wed 10 Jun 09

sheldrake wrote:
How dare Cllr Anne Rey say she has concerns with the club attracting people from West Howe,my dear you find undesirable people in every area in Bournemouth not just West Howe. I think people who are worse are those that think they are better than everyone else.
Often justified. £ cars in this road have been stolen over the last year, all found at West Howe. Completely wrecked. The police told me they get stolen for fun, get wrecked and then dumped near where the low life live.

Emulated says...
12:51pm Wed 10 Jun 09

Time to impose the Poll tax or local taxation instead of Council Tax. That way we all pay for such facilities and not just those who pay council tax.

Helper and Seeker says...
1:22pm Wed 10 Jun 09

I first read it and thought no wonder peopls are unhappy but as someone mentioned later on about it becoming a north bournemouth area littledown centre equivelant then this I am in favour of.

It is not something I would personally ever use but for others I fully support anf welcome the addition.

As for the few snobs well they can just join another private members club as they are the ones with spare money where as the general person on the street has little to spend of hobbies such as this.

natureman says...
2:03pm Wed 10 Jun 09

Emulated wrote:
sheldrake wrote: How dare Cllr Anne Rey say she has concerns with the club attracting people from West Howe,my dear you find undesirable people in every area in Bournemouth not just West Howe. I think people who are worse are those that think they are better than everyone else.
Often justified. £ cars in this road have been stolen over the last year, all found at West Howe. Completely wrecked. The police told me they get stolen for fun, get wrecked and then dumped near where the low life live.
Having been involved with Hurn for over 25years, the number of cars dumped at Pigshoot Ford and other lanes must number in their hundreds, which coincidently is very close to Throop and Holdenhurst!!!! low life snobs!!

sweetchuck says...
2:35pm Wed 10 Jun 09

I think it is a great opportunity for the people of the local area. My concern is the access to the club. The road is not designed for the amount of traffic that zoom up and down at present. There are no pavements. There are quite a few that keep horses at the farm and will ride. Could the council look at an alternate access to the club? And as Milhams Road Is very congested at the moment, plans need to made to accomodate Kinson's traffic needs.

pete woodley says...
2:54pm Wed 10 Jun 09

What a disgraceful thing to say re West Howe,or any area,Anne must distance herself from those who make such comments,if it was a comment about,a muslim,or any ethnic person,it would be considered racist.For a Independent councillor to bring up those points,shows that she has a low opinion of West Howe residents.You have let a lot of us down Anne.

rugby_dave says...
5:19pm Wed 10 Jun 09

Helper and Seeker wrote:
I first read it and thought no wonder peopls are unhappy but as someone mentioned later on about it becoming a north bournemouth area littledown centre equivelant then this I am in favour of. It is not something I would personally ever use but for others I fully support anf welcome the addition. As for the few snobs well they can just join another private members club as they are the ones with spare money where as the general person on the street has little to spend of hobbies such as this.
Not all the memebers of roko are snobs! i'm 22 and live in a council house in newtown, poole! i joined there because i wanted to use a nice gym, and liked that roko fitted the bill, but i can't see this working under council ownership! so i'll be ending my contact with them the day the council takes over

pete woodley says...
5:33pm Wed 10 Jun 09

rugby_dave wrote:
Helper and Seeker wrote:
I first read it and thought no wonder peopls are unhappy but as someone mentioned later on about it becoming a north bournemouth area littledown centre equivelant then this I am in favour of. It is not something I would personally ever use but for others I fully support anf welcome the addition. As for the few snobs well they can just join another private members club as they are the ones with spare money where as the general person on the street has little to spend of hobbies such as this.
Not all the memebers of roko are snobs! i'm 22 and live in a council house in newtown, poole! i joined there because i wanted to use a nice gym, and liked that roko fitted the bill, but i can't see this working under council ownership! so i'll be ending my contact with them the day the council takes over
Good,most of us would not want to join a club with people like you in it.What makes you different than anyone else.Cant be sociability.

excella@sky.com says...
7:12pm Wed 10 Jun 09

There are good and bad in any area and Cllr Rey and some of her ward are wrong to tarnish West Howe in this way. The people on the estate are perfectly entitled to use a club on its doorstep. Undesireables from ANY area should be exluded by the club itself

pete woodley says...
7:28pm Wed 10 Jun 09

Come on West Howe residents phone cllr rey and let her know how you feel about the comments.

rugby_dave says...
8:34pm Wed 10 Jun 09

pete woodley wrote:
rugby_dave wrote:
Helper and Seeker wrote: I first read it and thought no wonder peopls are unhappy but as someone mentioned later on about it becoming a north bournemouth area littledown centre equivelant then this I am in favour of. It is not something I would personally ever use but for others I fully support anf welcome the addition. As for the few snobs well they can just join another private members club as they are the ones with spare money where as the general person on the street has little to spend of hobbies such as this.
Not all the memebers of roko are snobs! i'm 22 and live in a council house in newtown, poole! i joined there because i wanted to use a nice gym, and liked that roko fitted the bill, but i can't see this working under council ownership! so i'll be ending my contact with them the day the council takes over
Good,most of us would not want to join a club with people like you in it.What makes you different than anyone else.Cant be sociability.
so i'm a snob because i like a good quality service at a decent price!? how does that work?! i just can't see it being the same in council ownership, because it'll be cheaper more people will use it (which is good) but it'll mean it'll be more crowed in there and the staff won't be able to help the user like they currenntly do! thats my point! why didn't roko ask their member what they wanted?

Geoff-Kinson says...
8:46pm Wed 10 Jun 09

pete woodley wrote:
Come on West Howe residents phone cllr rey and let her know how you feel about the comments.
Please read above Pete !
Cllr Rey never made the comments.It was residents who contacted her !

pete woodley says...
9:11pm Wed 10 Jun 09

Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote:
Come on West Howe residents phone cllr rey and let her know how you feel about the comments.
Please read above Pete !
Cllr Rey never made the comments.It was residents who contacted her !
Wake up and read mine,i never said she made them,so read mine properly next time,have the guts to apoligise for YOUR mistake and stop creeping,and stick to your common,you expert on nothing.

Geoff-Kinson says...
10:11pm Wed 10 Jun 09

pete woodley wrote:
Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote: Come on West Howe residents phone cllr rey and let her know how you feel about the comments.
Please read above Pete ! Cllr Rey never made the comments.It was residents who contacted her !
Wake up and read mine,i never said she made them,so read mine properly next time,have the guts to apoligise for YOUR mistake and stop creeping,and stick to your common,you expert on nothing.
Why ask West Howe residents to phone Cllr Rey then ?
What have I got to apologise about ?


pete woodley says...
10:28pm Wed 10 Jun 09

Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote:
Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote: Come on West Howe residents phone cllr rey and let her know how you feel about the comments.
Please read above Pete ! Cllr Rey never made the comments.It was residents who contacted her !
Wake up and read mine,i never said she made them,so read mine properly next time,have the guts to apoligise for YOUR mistake and stop creeping,and stick to your common,you expert on nothing.
Why ask West Howe residents to phone Cllr Rey then ?
What have I got to apologise about ?

You poor thing,did not anne rey say that there were concerns about west howe people using the centre.YES she did before it was removed by the echo.That is what i referred to.So as you still have not got the guts or decency to apoligise on here,i will come to you for it,Dont get stroppy with me.She made the points in her comments,West Howe residents have the right to contact her.

Geoff-Kinson says...
8:02am Thu 11 Jun 09

pete woodley wrote:
Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote:
Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote: Come on West Howe residents phone cllr rey and let her know how you feel about the comments.
Please read above Pete ! Cllr Rey never made the comments.It was residents who contacted her !
Wake up and read mine,i never said she made them,so read mine properly next time,have the guts to apoligise for YOUR mistake and stop creeping,and stick to your common,you expert on nothing.
Why ask West Howe residents to phone Cllr Rey then ? What have I got to apologise about ?
You poor thing,did not anne rey say that there were concerns about west howe people using the centre.YES she did before it was removed by the echo.That is what i referred to.So as you still have not got the guts or decency to apoligise on here,i will come to you for it,Dont get stroppy with me.She made the points in her comments,West Howe residents have the right to contact her.
I think you will find that Cllr Rey was misquoted by the reporter which is why it was removed.
You won't get an apology from me !

Oldalbanian says...
8:57am Thu 11 Jun 09

Why didn't the Council buy the old David Lloyd site and re-open it?

"Nationalising" Roko does not increase the number of clubs in the Borough just changes the owenership.

pete woodley says...
9:32am Thu 11 Jun 09

Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote:
Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote:
Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote: Come on West Howe residents phone cllr rey and let her know how you feel about the comments.
Please read above Pete ! Cllr Rey never made the comments.It was residents who contacted her !
Wake up and read mine,i never said she made them,so read mine properly next time,have the guts to apoligise for YOUR mistake and stop creeping,and stick to your common,you expert on nothing.
Why ask West Howe residents to phone Cllr Rey then ? What have I got to apologise about ?
You poor thing,did not anne rey say that there were concerns about west howe people using the centre.YES she did before it was removed by the echo.That is what i referred to.So as you still have not got the guts or decency to apoligise on here,i will come to you for it,Dont get stroppy with me.She made the points in her comments,West Howe residents have the right to contact her.
I think you will find that Cllr Rey was misquoted by the reporter which is why it was removed.
You won't get an apology from me !
So now blame the Echo reporter,did you get this information direct from the Echo,or are you telling "porkies" again,you are such a stirrer,that a lot of locals have given up listening to you.

natureman says...
2:06pm Thu 11 Jun 09

now now children, Pete you should know better, Geoff needs to crawl up the backsides of some people so that he can stay ensconsed at the common or else he would end up a nobody again. Geoff we need people like Pete who is prepared to tell it as it is even though he may stamp on your tail from time to time and upset your little world.

Dodgyknees says...
8:09pm Thu 11 Jun 09

pete woodley wrote:
Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote:
Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote:
Geoff-Kinson wrote:
pete woodley wrote: Come on West Howe residents phone cllr rey and let her know how you feel about the comments.
Please read above Pete ! Cllr Rey never made the comments.It was residents who contacted her !
Wake up and read mine,i never said she made them,so read mine properly next time,have the guts to apoligise for YOUR mistake and stop creeping,and stick to your common,you expert on nothing.
Why ask West Howe residents to phone Cllr Rey then ? What have I got to apologise about ?
You poor thing,did not anne rey say that there were concerns about west howe people using the centre.YES she did before it was removed by the echo.That is what i referred to.So as you still have not got the guts or decency to apoligise on here,i will come to you for it,Dont get stroppy with me.She made the points in her comments,West Howe residents have the right to contact her.
I think you will find that Cllr Rey was misquoted by the reporter which is why it was removed. You won't get an apology from me !
So now blame the Echo reporter,did you get this information direct from the Echo,or are you telling "porkies" again,you are such a stirrer,that a lot of locals have given up listening to you.
Pot calling the kettle black methinks !


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