Bournemouth amusement arcade earmarked for beach hotel

The Happyland building is in need of "extensive repair" according to a report

Bournemouth could get its first hotel on the beach, according to councillors considering the future of an "unloved" amusement arcade.

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council, which owns the lease on Happyland, says the promenade building is in "extensive need of repair".

Councillors are discussing a legal agreement with freeholder Meyrick Estate to allow its redevelopment.

They said a hotel was the "most likely option" for the site.

Plans for a hotel on the East Undercliff Promenade were first mooted by BCP and Meyrick Estate last year, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

A report to the cabinet on Monday 30 September said Meyrick Estate wanted to take a more active role in the development of its freehold land.

Councillors are therefore being asked to approve a legal agreement that would allow the estate to independently lease the land to a developer.

Under the agreement, BCP would not be able to specify what type of development it wanted to see and it would be unlikely to generate any significant financial return for the council, the report said.

BCP regeneration councillor Mark Howell told Monday's scrutiny board: "A hotel is believed to be the most likely option for the site but this is very early stages and there's nothing that restricts it to a hotel."

In July, BCP Council scrapped the tender process for a hotel on land it owns next to the Bournemouth International Centre (BIC).

It instead agreed to allocate £170,000 for a feasibility study for a larger scheme involving the BIC site.