OWNERSHIP of Cricklade leisure centre, its civic offices and library could be handed over to the town council in a deal worth more than £3 million.

Wiltshire Council offered the buildings last year and after months of negotiation and investigation, town councillors are ready to present the proposals to residents in a public meeting on October 17.

After that they will hold an extraordinary council meeting to discuss whether or not to accept the offer.

Chairman Mark Clarke wants as many residents as possible to turn out on the night to hear about the offer and the implications.

“It is a big decision for the town council and the town. We don’t normally get a lot of people at town council meetings and I would not want this to go through without people knowing,” he said. “The leisure centre has the main impact on the public. It is a significant decision.”

As part of the deal the unitary authority would pass ownership of of the leisure centre and grounds, the bulk of the town hall car park and all of the Ockwells building, including the library and doctor’s surgery to the town council.

The library would be leased back to Wiltshire at a peppercorn rent for 125 years, the surgery would be rented by the GP practice. The leisure centre would undergo a refurbishment to bring it up to scratch, with a backlog of repairs carried out and the provision of new space to allow the centre to generate more income.

A budget of £2.5 million would be allocated by Wiltshire for the work and another £600,000 would be paid to the town council for future upkeep instead of the £70,000 annual grant currently paid.

Work could include complete renewal of the centre’s electrics, hot water, heating and plant room equipment.Turning the old youth centre into changing rooms for the football clubs, removing squash courts, creating new studios and extending the gym were also being considered.

Cricklade and District Community Association, the charitable company that runs the leisure centre has backed the transfer and the revamp of the building. In its response it said: “This will transform the facility and make it viable for another generation.”

But it stressed it anticipated being fully involved in the planning to ensure the best outcome for customers and staff.

Taking over the Ockwells building, which houses the council offices as well as the library and surgery, would mean a saving of around £10,000. Currently the council spends £17,008 in rent service charges and insurance for Ockwells. After the transfer, with rent from the GP surgery, the expenditure is likely to be just over £7,000.

The surgery lease has run out and there is no guarantee the rent would be the same in the future although the tenant has expressed an interest in a new lease.

“We have reached the point where I think the councillors have got enough information to make a decision,” said Coun Clarke. But he stressed they would go in with an open mind.

The meeting is in the town hall and starts at 7pm.