So it's official - the Winter Gardens will be demolished this spring!

But isn't that what the Conservatives wanted to do back in 2001 as the only viable way forward?

And weren't they stopped by the Lib Dems who promised to 'save' the Winter Gardens if the people of Bournemouth put their trust in them and elected them to run Bournemouth Council?

And isn't it the Lib Dems who have turned their backs on their promises and are going to demolish the Winter Gardens after all because they have found out that the Conservatives were right all along and there simply is no viable future for the hall.

So why didn't the Lib Dems do their homework before making this reckless promise that they could never hope to deliver to the people of Bournemouth?

Simply to win control of Bournemouth Council - and politicians don't come much more cynical than that!

Rather than use the Winter Gardens site to fund the investment that is urgently needed and restore the Pavilion as the town's cultural entertainment venue for the 21st century, the Lib Dems now want to embark on an enormously expensive development on the site that could cost council tax payers very dearly. The Council have stated that it does not believe in the concept of going to the trouble of preparing a robust and independent business case for the project - rather that if everything falls into place as it hopes, it will work out financially.

But the omens are not good. By giving away much of the value of the Winter Gardens site (total value at least £12 million) and the proceeds from the sale of the Terrace Road car park for luxury flats (£6.6 million) the Council will provide a couple of small halls and some workshops and allow 200 student flats and social housing on this prime development land, in the hope of getting back £4 million towards the £11 million cost of the project. And all because the Lib Dems have boxed themselves into a corner and won't do the sensible thing for the people of Bournemouth.

There is more than sufficient capacity across the area to provide these surplus facilities elsewhere, many of them at the Pavilion if they are really needed. To be spending all this money and giving away the town's valuable assets at well below their full value is sheer folly. On top of this the council tax payers will also be giving a subsidy of £300,000 a year to support the operating costs, and no doubt much more if the whole adventure needs baling out in the future.

The Council's wish list of financial support from others seems hopelessly optimistic and without anything definite to support it other than interest in renting space and taking advantage of anything the Council has to offer for free.

The Conservatives challenge Bournemouth Council to produce a full business case before going any further with this high risk project. The people of Bournemouth expect their Council to keep its word, but since it clearly hasn't done that, residents have every right to expect the Council to guarantee the best value for money available when deposing of the town's valuable assets.

For further details please contact:-

Cllr John Beesley
Bournemouth Conservatives
on Bournemouth Council

Tel. 01202 762403
Mobile 07860 391219
email john.beesley@bournemouth.gov.uk