A long-awaited independent review is underway into the controversial Bournemouth Development Company, ten years after it was set up. BDC was established in 2011 as 50/50 partnership between the former Bournemouth Borough Council and private developer Morgan Sindall. But although it has delivered a number of flats schemes on town centre car parks, BDC has been bedevilled by criticism of a lack of transparency, the slow rate of progress, conflicts of interests and serious questions over whether it has been a good deal for taxpayers. There are growing concerns inside the council that BDC is not fit for purpose. Now a value for money review has started after the whole BDC issue was raised by independent councillor Steve Bartlett, chairman of BCP Council s overview and scrutiny committee.
THE value for money of Bournemouth Development Company is to be reviewed in a study commissioned by BCP Council. Questions about the financial deal the council gets as joint owner were raised by councillors on Monday during a discussion about its Durley Road car park scheme. Council chief executive Graham Farrant revealed a review of the value for money of the partnership with Morgan Sindall was in the early stages of being agreed. The decision to approve the sale of the Durley Road car park to the company was brought before Monday’s meeting of its scrutiny board by its new chairman, councillor Stephen Bartlett.