Further delays to repair work at Inverness Leisure Centre has meant scaffolding staying in place there for more than a year, with the price tag continuing to rise by hundreds of pounds each week.
The scaffolding was erected in April last year following a safety inspection which revealed problems with the windows above the public swimming pools.
Temporary repairs were carried out but the local authority, who said the scaffolding would remain in place as a safety measure prior to any permanent work being carried out.
But it was not until December last year when the council advertised for a tender to undertake remedial works to the internal roof of the building, and there was a lack of interest and the authority had to re-advertise, causing further delays.
In mid January, The Press and Journal reported that the authority had run up a bill of almost £40,000 to retain the scaffolding.
This resulted from the initial cost of £19,663.60 to erect the scaffolding and the ongoing charges of £450 a week by the contractor.
A council spokeswoman confirmed that the scaffolding was “still up” but is yet to provide an update on the total cost of it being there.
She added: “Unfortunately we had to advertise for contractors twice as we didn’t get a great response first time, which caused a delay.
“We have now appointed Morgan Sindall for the work and will be meeting them next week to agree an actual start date which is likely to be mid July.”
A spokesman for Inverness Leisure said previously that other than the aesthetics of scaffolding there has been minimal impact on the day-to-day operations of the facility.
The council wants a contractor to undertake remedial work on the “defective” timber roof beams which contain the glass windows over the two public pools.
The work is likely to involve the design and construction of a scaffold to reach the beams, the installation of new beams and repair to some of the older ones. This is expected to cost around £103,000.
