A DEVELOPMENT partner for Poole council's ambitious £132 million town centre north scheme will be found in the New Year.

Planning and transportation cabinet member, Cllr Ian Potter, gave a brief update on the project - set to be the largest of its kind in the borough's history - at a meeting on Tuesday.

He said town centre north (the area around Kingland Road, the bus station and the Dolphin Leisure Centre) is set to become the "heart of Poole".

A development partner to deliver the scheme will be procured in the New Year, Cllr Potter told cabinet members at the meeting. Under the council's plans, which are still at an early stage, more than 400 homes will be built in the area, as well as modern office buildings, a hotel, a new leisure centre, and a new bus station.

A number of 'attractive' public spaces with improved pedestrian and cycling facilities are promised, as well as better connectivity to the railway station.

The scheme could be one the Bournemouth Development Company (BDC) sets its sights on.

As reported in the Echo on Thursday, a leaked email revealed Bournemouth council's public/private partnership with Morgan Sindall Investments could start building in the Poole and Christchurch area after next year's council merger.

Poole town centre councillor Mark Howell said it was important that Poole council's decision to appoint a development partner was made in the "best interests of Poole".

"Poole has a plan for redevelopment of Town Centre North. The new authority will need a development partner to deliver it. BDC could be that partner, but [...] other potential partners should also be properly considered," he said.

At a meeting in April, councillors agreed funds raised from land sales at Beach Road Car Park and Constitution Hill would be ploughed into Town Centre North, and that the Dolphin Swimming Pool site - and land to the north and south of Seldown Car Park - were earmarked for the development.