A TOWN centre car park in Poole that has been closed since May 2012 is to be repaired and re-opened at a cost of £750,000.

Major repairs are to be carried out to the leaking roof-top car park above Dolphin Shopping Centre stores.

Although temporary sheeting was installed to reduce the amount of rainwater leaking from the Serpentine Lane car park into the shops below, WH Smith was one of those which suffered from water getting into the store.

In February 2013 the Dolphin Shopping Centre was sold and Borough of Poole has had detailed discussions and negotiations with the new owners, Legal & General Property, to resolve the long standing problem.

Work is due to begin on July 17 to replace the car park surface, water proofing system and expansion joints as well as cladding the brickwork parapets.

Repairs will also be made to the stairwells and a new low energy lighting system will be installed to reduce energy consumption.

The project is being jointly funded by Borough of Poole and Legal & General Property and the long-closed car park is due to reopen in October.

Cllr Ian Potter, cabinet portfolio holder for transportation, Borough of Poole, said: “This is a great example of partnership working at its best.

“Borough of Poole and Legal & General Property have worked closely together to develop a solution which will ensure that the roof-top car park will be available for public use in the autumn and provide relief for the shops which have suffered leaks for many years. This is great news for residents and visitors to Poole especially in the busy shopping period leading up to Christmas.”

The work will be undertaken by Balfour Beatty.