COUNCIL pundits are recommending a "yes" vote on a revised bid to redevelop the historic former cornfactor building and adjoining land off Christchurch High Street.

After following the professionals' advice to turn down a previous scheme in December, members of the council's planning control committee are on Thursday being recommended to approve the new proposals.

At the centre of the development is the restoration of the long-abandoned 18th century three-storey cornfactor building sandwiched between the Druitt Gardens and the rear of High Street shops.

The new outline application proposes 19 one- and two-bed flats in a three-storey terrace on the Druitt Gardens frontage of the third of an acre site flanked by the side wall of Woolworths and the grounds of the library.

Plans also include a courtyard of five shops and café with pedestrian access to the High Street through the existing alley between premises currently occupied by Baggies and Kelly's Kitchen.

An existing planning consent - granted in 1997 but not completed until 2002 owing to legal wrangling - allows the demolition of the three-storey brick building, the last vestige of the town's 18th century corn market.

As well as preserving a piece of the past, the new scheme also aims to offer future prosperity with new shops and homes on an otherwise overgrown backwater in the town centre conservation area.

The Christchurch Citizens Association local watchdog group is among objectors to the scheme with concerns over the scale of housing overlooking the Druitt Gardens and the impact on parking and traffic in the town centre.

But case officer Carol Evans said the new proposals overcame earlier reasons for refusal and the development would form "a new and attractive addition to the historic town centre" without impinging on the character of the conservation area.