£50m Bournemouth town centre plans get thumbs up (From Bournemouth Echo)

£50m Bournemouth town centre plans get thumbs up

8:10am Saturday 12th September 2009

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By Melanie Vass »

A £50 million scheme to build a hotel and two apartment blocks around a multi-storey car park has cleared its first hurdle.

The plans to surround the existing Richmond Gardens car park in Bournemouth with a 173-bedroom hotel, offices and 120 apartments were given the thumbs up by cabinet members.

The scheme still has to go before planners but needed the approval of cabinet because the council is the leaseholder of the rundown car park.

If the proposals do go on to get planning permission, develop-ers Grosvenor will invest £1.3 million in improving the surrounding area.

The council will also benefit from a share of the profits of the residential and hotel development, which will be reinvested back into the car park.

The Richmond Gardens car park is at the top of Richmond Hill, just off the Wessex Way.

The proposed hotel would be clad in copper and the apartment blocks would be built in an Art Deco style.

An additional 79-space car parking deck is also proposed, while the pedestrian area around Dalkeith Steps will be re-landscaped, and a tree planting and management plan put in place.

Cabinet member Cllr Bob Chapman said: “This innovative partnership approach will help to kick-start the town centre vision.

“While the amount of money available to the council for reinvestment will be dependent upon the financial success of this development, it has the potential to provide around 70 additional spaces in a brighter, refurbished Richmond Gardens car park through a profit sharing arrangement that will be at no direct cost to the council tax payer.”

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