CIVIC chiefs are set to sanction a £7.7m deal with financial giant Legal & General in a bid to revitalise Poole town centre.

Borough of Poole (BOP) councillors have been asked to approve a town centre lease restructure that will help fund improvements to the Dolphin Shopping Centre, Falkland Square and Kingland Crescent.

Poole council owns the freehold of a large swathe of the town centre, including units in the Dolphin Shopping Centre and Towngate Square.

In 2013 Legal and General Properties (LGP) purchased the Dolphin Shopping Centre lease from Dutch firm Wereldhave for £57.7m.

Borough of Poole (BOP) has been working on a lease restructure as part of investment proposals geared at attracting new businesses to the town centre.

Among the improvements being pushed through will be an obligation for LGP to refurbish the Dolphin Centre’s interior, which will take place at a future date - possibly as early as next year - subject to LGP obtaining board approval.

They would also be asked to "undertake and fund improvements to the public realm in Falkland Square and improve the facades of the buildings in Kingland Crescent to the value of circa £7.7m."

Read the proposal here

However the proposals have been slammed by members of the Poole People party - who claim they are not in the interest of Poole residents.

They believe the deal is likely to strike a “serious blow” to the council’s plans to regenerate the northern part of Poole’s town centre because it includes keeping the Dolphin car park in its current location, behind the bus station, for 25 years.

Earlier this month BOP cabinet members met to note progress on these investment proposals, and agreed to recommend full council makes the final approval on the plans at its Civic Centre meeting next week.

Objectives of the lease restructure, which will mean LGP funding improvements to the value of £7.7m, are to facilitate the following:

  • Significant LGP investment in the Dolphin Shopping Centre, including an internal mall refurbishment.
  • Improvements - funded by LGP - to facades in Falkland Square and Kingland Crescent.
  • BOP-led investment in the Dolphin Shopping Centre’s multi-storey car park. Subject to LGP confirming certain mall refurbishment works, BOP will fund and deliver £1.5m car park enhancements.

These enhancements will be in addition to the £2.3m currently being spent on essential repairs to the car park.

In response the council will grant a new headlease across the whole centre, extending the existing term of 96 years to 150 years.

Council leader Janet Walton (inset) said: “The council is ambitious for Poole and wants to create a vibrant town centre we can all be proud of.

“The Dolphin Centre, Towngate Square and Kingland Crescent are central to the council’s plans for the long-term future and prosperity of the town centre.

“We have worked closely with our partners at LGIM Real Assets (L&G) over recent months to develop an exciting proposal that reflects our shared ambition for the town centre.

“As part of this proposal, L&G and the council are looking to invest into our town centre to improve the retail and leisure offering.”

The plans will be discussed before full council at 7pm on Tuesday.

But Poole People party says the deal is “against the interests of residents”.

Poole Party, which has three representatives on the council, has criticised the deal claiming that if agreed it would “strike a blow” to the council’s ambitions to regenerate the northern part of Poole’s town centre.

They say it would mean 'welcome investment' and 'sensible simplification' of the lease, but believe the council should not agree to keep the Dolphin car park in its current location for 25 years and should have insisted that the annex building adjacent to the bus station, which currently houses Subway and other shop units, was transferred to the council.

A statement from the party said: “The council has a long-held ambition to link the Lighthouse to the town centre. But failure to secure development rights to the annex and Dolphin car park means that regeneration of this part of the town is unlikely to be achieved successfully.

"The improvements that L&G are committing to make to the Dolphin Centre are unlikely to transform the offer sufficiently to attract the additional visitors that the town centre needs to become successful.

"In return, the council is accepting a permanent reduction in the returns it receives in respect of property that it leases to L & G, and is extending the leases from 96 to 150 years."

Mark Howell, leader of Poole People, said: “I do not believe this agreement will create the change the town centre needs to become an attractive and sustainable destination. The Conservative administration is selling out, taking an easy option that will compromise the achievement of successful regeneration.”