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England Basketball is moving to the EIS in Sheffield and selling
their premises in Leeds.
Having been based in Leeds for the past thirteen years, the staff
at the governing body are looking forward to the move that will
give them access to high performance facilities and services and
at the same time ease their financial situation.
England Basketball CEO, Keith Mair said the move was a 'great
relief'.
"Our current property is in a dilapidated state, is in a
bad location for people trying to come and see us, and was costing
us money that we could ill afford" he said.
"This move will free up some funds which will allow us to
repay some debts. It will also provide the staff with an elite
sports working environment. All of the staff are very excited
about this."
EIS Sheffield is one of nine regional multi-sport hub sites, supported
by 35 satellite centres, which make up the English Institute of
Sport.
Facilities at the centre include an indoor 200m track and ‘sprint’
straight for athletics and specialist facilities for a range of
sports including basketball, badminton, judo, boxing, and table
tennis. In addition there are state of the art support facilities
such as a hydrotherapy pool, a fitness suite, an ice treatment
room, a fitness testing area and a conditioning suite.
Despite basketball not having a lottery-funded performance programme,
the four courts within EIS Sheffield will be available for use
by local teams and national tournaments and camps.
It was during November of 1990 that England Basketball moved from
Calomax House in Leeds to the current location, 48 Bradford Road,
some 10 miles away in Stanningley. EB bought the building on Bradford
Road (a former Midland bank branch) in hopes that there would
be, “…much more scope for development of the property
in years to come” (Zone Press, Ed. 12, 1990). However, very
little development was achieved for the first several years and
another plan for relocation was in the works as early as 1998.
EIS Sheffield is located between Don Valley Stadium and Sheffield
Hallam Arena in a rapidly growing area of business and trade in
the city. It can be found at the junction of Coleridge Road and
Attercliffe Common – a 5-10 minute drive from junction 34
of the M1 motorway and Meadowhall Shopping Centre.
The move is expected to happen before the start of the 2003-2004
season.
Source:
EB
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