THE scheme to develop a car park in Bournemouth will be investigated to see if council proposals to sell the site at below market value can be justified.

The Overview and Scrutiny Committee will test and challenge the claim of BCP officers that there are economic and social reasons why the Durley Road site should be sold at less than it is actually worth.

Currently the plan for 44 flats is on the books of the Bournemouth Development Company, the joint venture between Morgan Sindall and BCP Council.

The company was set up in 2011 by the old Bournemouth Borough Council to develop many of the town’s key sites with Morgan Sindall as a partner.

A contract was signed on the Durley Road scheme and officers are warning that BCP Council could be liable to pay compensation if it wanted to withdraw.

The council is planning to sell Durley Road to BDC for £366k and is also expecting to get another £900k, half of the projected profit on the development.

But in October, Richard Carr, chief executive of Poole-based Fortitudo, offered BCP £1.55m for the site, four times the BDC amount, and he has told officers he could make a substantially bigger profit on the same scheme.

This would give BCP a much larger amount in total, the car park sale price of £1.55m and the additional profit.

Mr Carr has been invited to the December 7 meeting to share his concerns about the current proposal and the apparent dominant role of BDC more generally in the marketplace because of its tie up with the council.

Chairman of Overview and Scrutiny, Cllr Steve Bartlett told the Echo: “We are looking to challenge the assumptions that the officers have made to ensure this complies with the Localism Act.”

The law states councils must dispose of assets at best value unless there are compelling reasons otherwise.

“The only circumstances in which a council can dispose of an asset below market value is if there are wider benefits,” explained Cllr Bartlett. “In this particular case it is not a regeneration project and there is no affordable housing,” he said.

Cllr Bartlett is also interested in the effect the council’s relationship with Morgan Sindall has on other developers in the area and their ability to compete. He said it was “an issue.”

He added: “I felt it reasonable to invite Mr Carr when I was told he had an interest in the site.

“Personally I have an overriding concern that the local taxpayers get value for money.”

Cllr Bartlett was a member of the planning board that turned down the Durley Road scheme but permission was granted on appeal.

“The question now is whether this all stacks up,” he said.

BDC has built on a number of car park sites in Bournemouth but the most ambitious project is the huge Winter Gardens proposal.