RESIDENTS' cynicism over plans to convert a derelict lido into an indoor tennis centre is proving to be well-founded.

Greenwich Council's proposals to transform Eltham Lido, Eltham Park South, into six courts alongside changing rooms and restaurants were first unveiled at a packed public meeting just over a year ago.

The majority of people at the meeting were sceptical about whether the proposals for the lido would become a reality and put their hands up in an informal vote for the site to be grassed over instead.

And now, the council admits a bid to the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) for a grant to help finance the £3m project has still not been submitted, despite the deadline being sometime this month.

Resident, Tony Hagan, of Westmount Road, who attended last year's meeting, repeated calls for the lido to be landscaped.

He said: "The council may as well grass it over. At least then it won't be the eyesore it is now. The council knew the deadline, so why has it left it so late?"

The lido has remained an eyesore ever since its closure in 1986, despite a campaign in the 1990s to reopen it as an all-year-round pool.

Conservative councillors Dermot Poston and Spencer Drury, who both represent Eltham North, say the council is incompetent.

Cllr Poston said: "It looks like we will have to wait another 18 years before anything happens on that site. This derelict swimming baths is not only an eyesore but also a menace to youngsters who climb over and get up to mischief."

Cllr Drury echoed his colleague's concerns. He said: "The council's incompetence has left Eltham Park with a deserted, vandalised lido right next door to a children's playground. When the council announces plans like this, surely it must know no-one believes them anymore?"

The council's proposals are to supplement the park's existing 20 tennis courts with an indoor tennis centre on the grounds of the lido site. But they are dependent on the LTA providing 45 per cent of the project's costs.

A council spokesman said: "We were doing a feasibility study into what an LTA bid would bring. The proportion of the LTA funding would leave a substantial gap as it stands.

"We are looking at opportunities to fill this gap, including bids to the National Lottery and other funding sources."

At time of going to press, neither the LTA nor the council were able to confirm the exact date of the deadline for the bid.