Whitfield has been labelled as a site with the most potential to house a new Dover leisure centre, a review has confirmed.

In a report that is subject to approval by the district council’s cabinet next month, Maison Dieu and the current Townwall Street sites have been dropped from the running.

The results of the review that took place in the summer show that the centre cannot remain where it is.

It is costing more than £1.5 million a year to maintain the dilapidated building and it needs replacing, it said.

The report reads: “The existing leisure centre site and Maison Dieu are affected by a lack of capacity to accommodate the new centre options and the recommended parking.

“While the parking issues could be resolved via provision of multi-storey parking on either site, this would come at a considerable additional cost and has been discounted on affordability grounds.

“Furthermore, the development of the Dover Leisure Centre site would result in loss of service for a period of up to 18 months, which is another major issue.”

It goes on to say that flat land in Whitfield “is arguably more accessible by car in the wider district catchment”.

The document urges that the cabinet, in its meeting on Monday, January 11, “investigates in detail” the viability of the Whitfield site.

It then said: “Subject to the assessment, authorise the director of environment and corporate assets in consultation with the portfolio holder for property management and public protection to take all necessary steps to secure an interest in the land required to facilitate the development.”

It said that construction should commence during 2017 and the centre could potentially be completed by 2018.

In the same meeting, the scrutiny committee’s recommendation that the public is consulted has been included on the agenda.