THERE are three options for the Water Place.

It could remain open, it could be sold and turned into a different facility -- or it could be demolished.

And of the three, the latter is the most likely outcome.

The council has said it cannot afford the £4.5 million needed to carry out the work on the swimming complex.

Much of the Water Place is crumbling, with out-of-date equipment and urgent work needed on the water treatment filter system and the water tanks. Other major structural and mechanical work also has to be carried out.

Keith Davies, deputy director of Bolton's Department of Education and Culture, said: "We cannot continue to pour money into facilities.

"The Water Place is very popular as an attraction on a wet summer's day in August, but those days are one-offs. Over the course of a year, the complex is not as popular as we would like.

"Perhaps we haven't invested enough in the centre over the past few years but maintenance has been a problem."

He added: "The building is very moist and we need to be on top of it all the time. We've invested money in the flumes and the wave machines but the place needs so much more."

If the Water Place does close, it will be a sad end for the £5 million complex which was opened by the Queen to such a great fanfare in December 1988, replacing the High Street baths.

It was part of a multi-million pound facelift for the town which also involved building a new bus station and car park. The project revolutionised the town centre and brought thousands of people to the area from outside the borough.

The complex attracted swimmers with three levels of water pools, including one with flumes, a play area for parents with young children, a jacuzzi and a four-lane training pool.

It also boasts a wave machine, a crazy river ride, cascades, water canons, sprays and geysers. The Water Place was an immediate success, with 300,000 swimmers using the 4,373 sq metre complex in the first eight months, but it started leaking thousands of pounds in the opening months. It has never made a profit.

A survey conducted recently by Bolton Council showed 50 per cent of swimmers came from outside Bolton.

But more people are joining private clubs like Esporta and David Lloyd and the pool is continuing to struggle.

Cllr Laurie Williamson, Bolton Council's executive member for culture, said: "The Water Place was state-of-the-art, but that was 14 years ago. It has now reached the stage where major plant and machinery needs renewing and the kind of investment needed cannot be justified against dwindling use."