August 1993 - Major structural problems emerge at the former Burns Pool, in Stanley, as brickwork comes loose.
September 1996 - Derwentside District Council makes a £7m bid to National Lottery agents Sport England to build a pool at the town's Louisa Sports Centre.
December 1996 - The Burns Pool is closed down as being unsafe.
January 1997 - Councillors decide to demolish the old pool, citing a £4m repair bill.
March 1997 - First bid is thrown out by Sport England. A second bid for £4.5m is made.
September 1997 - The bulldozers move in at the Burns Pool after an unsuccessful campaign to keep the pool open by residents.
June 1998 - Sport England rejects the second bid, arguing it could be built cheaper at a different site. The council compiles a third bid.
May 2000 - Sport England turns down the council bid but accepts the Louisa Centre site. It advises the council to re-examine the designs and scale down the costs - effectively a fourth bid.
July 2000 - A 3,000 petition of Stanley residents is handed to Minister for Culture Chris Smith asking him to intervene.
September 2000 - The fourth set of designs is submitted.
February 2001 - Council and Sport England confirm the last bid looks likely to be given the green light.
September 2001 - The Northern Echo reveals exclusively that the bid is successful.
December 2001 - Work begins.
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