BURNLEY'S St Peter's car park is set to be demolished -- after a report revealed it could cost more than £1m to repair.

Council bosses now want to offload the 500-space car stack to make way for a new medical centre.

The demolition of the car park, which operates at a loss of £7,000 a year, has been mooted for some time, due to the rising costs of bringing it up to standard.

Earlier this month, councillors agreed in principle to sell the Town Hall car park to JobCentre Plus for their new development. The possible demolition of St Peter's car park, highlighted in a report to the council's executive, has led to concern about parking levels in the town centre. However, council bosses say other sites would be available for parking.

The controversial plans will be debated at a meeting of the borough council's executive tonight.

The report identifies a need for the council to spend more than £360,000 to deal with immediate structural repairs, including roof, deck and barrier work. Another £335,000 is needed for other repairs and a possible £500,000 to bring the car park up to standard in terms of aesthetics and security.

The council have already held talks with representatives of the LIFT project, a public/private partnership aimed at bringing the area's health facilities up to date.

LIFT say the St Peter's car park was the ideal site for them as it was close to the town centre with good public transport links. The site would hold a health centre.

The council report said: "LIFT have confirmed they are still very interested in a scheme on the site of St Peter's. If it were to proceed, it would require the demolition of the existing car stack.

"LIFT's interest in the site has come at a time when the council must consider the future of St Peter's car stack. A full structural survey has been completed and has identified the need for significant capital expenditure.

"Howver, there is currently no business case for further investment in the property as the car park makes a financial loss."