Just under 100 people turned up at a public meeting to voice their anger over plans to close Auchinleck Leisure Centre in a matter of weeks.
And the organisers will now urge East Ayrshire Council to delay their plans to shut the centre at the end of November.
Rona Hunter, who set up the meeting on October 30, as well as a petition to save the centre from closure, said: "People are upset. Our first priority is to get in touch with the council and try to stop the closure.
"We are asking for the centre to stay open as long as it can - at least, in the short term, to the same time the pitches are due to close in 2024.
"After that, we can see if there's any way to save it. The petition is already online for people to sign and we are talking to clubs and businesses. There will be a Facebook group set up too.
"There were a lot of people at the meeting and made their views plain. Three of our councillors were there too, giving their support.
"We asked for volunteers to come and help us and it is a big commitment, but we got a good response to that at the meeting."
The plan to close the Auchinleck Centre, including the pool facilities, was agreed by East Ayrshire Council's Cabinet last week and most in the town knew nothing about it until Friday.
Rona said: "It came out of the blue to everyone. It was the shortest notice, but I'm glad there was such a good turnout at the meeting. I was also pleased our councillors came along."
It was confirmed today that the council plan to demolish the former Auchinleck Academy building too.
Rona added: "When the council shut Auchinleck Academy a few years ago, we thought the leisure centre would be open a bit more. That didn't happen.
"Now the council are blaming excessive costs and limited usage. If we manage to delay the closure in the short term, we hope to prove them wrong."
Keep checking for further updates on this developing story.
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