LAND that is home to industrial units in Poole could be sold by BCP Council to fund its ongoing “transformation” programme.

A report, seen by the Daily Echo, outlines the plan to sell the land at 35 Willis Way, Fleetsbridge, to the current rental tenant.

Details on the agreed fee for the site are not included in the papers, with these contained within a confidential financial report.

The item is said to be going before BCP Council’s cabinet on June 22 although it is not included in the most recent version of the forward plan.

Cabinet members are set to be asked to recommend to council that it agrees to the disposal of the site for the price in the confidential report and it delegates authority to the corporate property officer in consultation with the portfolio holder, monitoring officer and section 151 officer to finalise the detailed terms of the disposal.

The report by senior estates surveyor Sarah Knott says: “The asset is classified as an investment asset and is non-strategic.

“The capital receipt represents best value to the council.

“Whilst a rental income is received from the property, this is relatively low as it only represents a ground rent.

“There are 57 years unexpired on the lease and therefore it will be quite a time before any real increase in the rent can be achieved.

“In line with the council’s flexible use of capital receipts policy, it is proposed that the capital receipt is earmarked to fund the revenue costs of the council’s transformation programme.”

The land at Fleets Industrial Estate features 17 industrial units. The site rented out on a 99-year ground lease from May 22, 1980.

The report says the tenant approached the council to purchase the freehold interest and terms have been negotiated between the parties.

The Conservative leader and deputy leader of BCP Council, councillors Drew Mellor and Philip Broadhead, have frequently stated that their administration would invest in assets rather than selling them.

In January, during a briefing on the 2022/23 budget proposals, Cllr Mellor told the Daily Echo: “You can only sell an asset once outside of the council.

"We believe in this environment, particularly still with record cheap debt, we need to be investing in assets not selling them.”

The Daily Echo approached BCP Council for comment on the proposed land sale, but at the time of going to print had not received a response.