OF ALL the people suffering from the credit crunch, property developers will probably be the last in line for any public sympathy.

But you have to spare a thought for Redrow Homes. After shelling out an estimated £10million for Bournemouth’s Terrace Mount car park – money which has already been invested in a dance centre at the Pavilion – the developers then spent years trying to get planning permission for the site.

They were successful at the second time of asking but the timing could not have been worse. Before they even had time to celebrate properly, the property market collapsed.

But Redrow are not alone in seeing their plans threatened by the looming recession. With banks reluctant to lend money, flats no longer selling and restaurants and bars struggling for customers, a question mark now hangs over several of Bournemouth’s major projects.

One of the most high-profile is West Central – a complex of around 17 restaurants and a nine-screen cinema multiplex planned for the former bus station site at Exeter Road.

Originally, developer Licet Holdings Ltd hoped to have the scheme open by the end of this year but this was delayed due to problems in getting restaurants to commit to the site.

Work is now due to start early next year, with completion scheduled for late 2010.

This year should also have seen the completion of the hotel school, due to be built next to the BIC.

This joint project between the Regional Development Agency, Bournemouth University and the council was originally intended to open in January 2008.

But a delay in finding private sector investment has hampered progress and there have been council hints that the site could be used for something else as part of the Town Centre Master Vision.

There’s been an equally frustrating lack of progress at the former ice rink site at Westover Road – but this time, there’s nothing the council can do about it.

The site is owned by Luminar Leisure, which has a licence to convert the derelict ice rink into a nightclub for 2,200 revellers but has been reluctant to move forward with these plans, instead unveiling alternative proposals for a Majestic Casino.

These plans were opposed by the council and refused by Bournemouth Magistrates and so the council finds itself in the familiar position of waiting to see what Luminar will do next.

At the top of Commercial Road the transformation of the former C&A building into a mix of flats, offices and shops is almost complete.

Some of the affordable flats have already been sold, although Assettrust Housing admits the job of selling the rest will be far harder than it would have been a couple of years ago. No tenants have yet been found for the four shop units, which are currently being marketed.

A similar scheme planned for the car park at the corner of Madeira Road and Lansdowne Road has also had to be altered because of the economic downturn.

Originally intended to be a mix of shops and flats, the site will now house student accommodation.

And then there’s the Kings Park ice stadium, which some fear is a dream that will never be fulfilled. It was once hoped that the facility would open in 2008 but delays associated with a change in administration mean it is now trying to get off the ground in the very worst of times.

In such uncertain times, many might question Bournemouth council’s plan of trying to forge a long-term partnership with a developer, who will match the value of the town’s assets with hard cash and fund the Town Centre Master Vision.

But Cllr John Beesley, deputy leader of the council, said Bournemouth was right to press ahead with the plan.

“If you just put a stop to all our work we would lose all that momentum and a lot of credibility as we get further into it,” he said. “For the moment we are carrying on but we’re doing it very cautiously.”