Loss-making Hillend ski centre 'could be shut down within weeks'

Published on Friday 5 February 2010 22:06

SCOTLAND'S largest artificial ski centre is facing closure within weeks under a major cost-cutting drive by its local authority owners, The Scotsman can reveal.

The facility at Hillend, in Midlothian, which boasts one of the world's longest artificial slopes, may be mothballed at the end of March unless officials can plug a 500,000 funding gap.

Insiders at Midlothian Council, which owns the centre admitted closure was the most likely option for the complex, which opened in 1965.

The council is understood to have drawn a blank in efforts to find a buyer for the Midlothian Snowsports Centre – nine months after senior figures warned it was struggling to maintain the ageing facility. National agency SportScotland is expected to be asked to bail out the complex, the biggest in Britain, over the next few weeks in a bid to prevent a full closure of Hillend.

A partial closure is also being explored to try and reduce the council's annual 500,000 subsidy.

News of Hillend's possible demise has thrown fresh scrutiny over how sports facilities will be affected by the pressure on local authority budgets. Just days ago Scottish rugby legend Scott Hastings launched a high-profile drive that underlined the importance of children participating in sport.

A 4 million revamp of the ski centre was proposed less than three years ago.

But increasing pressures on the council's finances has led to its future coming under increasing scrutiny.

The chief executive of Snowsports Scotland last night warned the loss of the Hillend complex would leave a "major gap" in the nation's facilities.

Thousands of youngsters from the Edinburgh and Lothians area use the centre every weekend, but it is also the main base of several skiing clubs and has been a training centre for major Scottish skiers such as Finlay Mickel and Alain Baxter in recent years.

The Hillend complex is one of several major outdoor dry slopes across Scotland, but is much larger than the two in Glasgow, one in Aberdeen and another in Lanarkshire.

Ownership was transferred to Midlothian Council from the old Lothian Regional Council in 1996 amid fears it might then be closed, but the local authority has shouldered the burden of the centre's finances on its own, despite fewer than 20 per cent of its users coming from the Midlothian area.

Formerly known as Hillend Ski Centre it was rebranded six years ago to reflect the growing popularity of snowboarding in Scotland.

The council has been in talks with a private developer about a joint project to create a five-star hotel, tourist village and country club on a neighbouring site, but the scheme has been on hold until the long-term future of the ski centre is decided.

Senior council official Donald Mackay, director of communities, warned last year that there was a "big question mark" hanging over the complex.

Council leader Derek Milligan said: "It should come as no surprise that we are facing some tough choices as a result of cuts in central government funding. Worst cases estimates suggest we need to make cuts of some 18 million in the near future at a time when the demand for council services is increasing.

"We are looking at the options … to reduce current operating losses of some 500,000 a year, but it is premature to comment further at this time."

One source at the local authority said: "It is not looking good at the moment for Hillend. A decision to close Hillend will not be taken lightly but it is almost certain that a major source of funding will have to be put on the table from an alternative source."

Jane Harvey, chief executive of Snowsport Scotland, said: "There's no doubt that Hillend would be sorely missed if it were to close. It is still the second biggest artificial slope anywhere in Europe and is used by people of all ages, both learning snow sports and as a training facility, even for our elite performers."

PEAK PRACTICE

BUILT in 1965, the artificial ski slope at Hillend is one of the longest in the world.

It is made up of two main slopes, which are 320 metres and 450 metres long, a 20 metre nursery slope and a jump slope.

Runs are made of matting suitable for use all year round and floodlighting allows the slopes to be used in the evening.

There were fears Hillend might close in 1996 with the demise of the old Lothian Regional Council. Responsibility shifted to Midlothian Council.