West Lothian Council will soon launch a consultation over proposals to advertise this surplus property for sale or lease on the open market.
The site is classed as common good property, which means it is owned by the council, with statutory processes that the council must follow if it wishes to change the use of the property or dispose of it.
An eight-week community consultation on the proposals for the property will launch soon, with the results reported back to Council Executive in June 2026.
Depute Council Leader Susan Manion said: "We will shortly be launching a community consultation over the future of the Armadale Pool site.
"I would encourage any local community groups or interested individuals to come forward with their views on the proposals to market the site if a viable community use is not found.
"The recent decision to grant a community asset transfer lease to turn the former Bathgate West nursery into a hub for music in the town shows what can be achieved if different local groups work together towards a shared community goal.
"We hope the community consultation will act as a catalyst, and help see a currently unused property back into positive use for the Armadale community."
Any net proceeds from the sale or lease of the property would go directly to the Armadale Common Good Fund, with community groups able to make bids into that fund through the Armadale and Blackridge Local Area Committee
Why did Armadale Pool close?
Armadale Pool has been closed for over two and a half years, after it was no longer financially viable for Xcite to operate it was making a significant monthly financial loss.
West Lothian Leisure warned they faced the risk of insolvency, which could mean the closure of all Xcite facilities, if it was not allowed to close the pool.
Prior to the pool closing in September 2023, the council sought expressions of interest both from commercial and community groups who might be interested in operating the swimming pool.
Unfortunately, no financially viable interests were received at that time.
What is the current situation of the pool site?
West Lothian Council has no plans to re-open the building, and does not require it for service delivery.
It has been available for any interested local groups to lease or takeover via Community Asset Transfer (CAT) since August 2023, with no CAT requests received during this time.
We have received no approaches from any parties wishing to re-open it at this time.
The council previously engaged with Armadale Thistle Football Club over an extensive period on community-led proposals for the property, however the club have not been able to take those proposals forward.
In accordance with the decision made by elected members in 2023, the pool was not drained when it closed. This was aimed at minimising potential costs if anyone wished in future to re-open the pool.
Measures were taken to reduce operating costs, including stopping heating the pool and only utilising background heating for the building. While the operating and security costs of maintaining the pool building have been minimised, the council has been incurring these costs for over two and a half years and it is clearly not sustainable to meet these indefinitely.
Council Executive unanimously agreed to drain the pool in March 2026. Draining a pool could potentially lead to some extra repair costs to reinstate tiles and grouting, but would not prevent it being re-opened in the future.
