A LANDOWNER has promised to build a £3m swimming pool in Guisborough - if his plans for a housing development on a greenfield site are approved.

Bernard Lax, whose family has owned Galley Hill Farm, off Stokesley Road, Guisborough, since 1951, is hoping sell off 30 acres of the 40-acre site for housing, with the rest being converted into woodland and play areas.

He also intends to build 30 starter homes for local people only, with 15 for sale at cost price and 15 available on a rent-to-buy basis.

Mr Lax, who lives in Redcar, outlined his plans for the farmland at a meeting of Guisborough Town Council on Thursday of last week.

He said: "When I first thought of developing there, I heard Guisborough was having problems with its swimming pool. I thought I could help because out of the money I will gain, 40pc will be taken in Capital Gains Tax.

"I consulted swimming pool experts and discovered that a 25m pool would cost about £3m. And I thought, rather than give that to the Inland Revenue, why not give it to the people of the town?"

When asked who would maintain the pool once it was built, Mr Lax said: "The borough council is not sure itself, yet.

"But we are talking about the very latest in technology, with solar powered heating, rather than old-fashioned boilers, and very low maintenance equipment.

"At the moment, the council is pouring thousands of pounds into it. What I am proposing would virtually pay for itself."

Mr Lax said the location of the pool would be entirely up to the local authority and local people.

"It could be where it is now or anywhere in the town," he said.

The 30 starter homes would be sold and rented out on the strict proviso that they were for first-time buyers aged between 18 and 30 who were from the Guisborough area.

A clause would prevent the homes being sold for profit within the first five years, and tenants taking on subsequent leases would be tied to further five-year agreements.

Mr Lax said: "If anybody wants to sell the houses within the first five years, they will have to sell them back to me and I will then sell them on at the original price. This will make sure that they remain as starter homes for local people and are not bought by someone wanting to make a quick profit."

He added that he would like to see the proposed estate as a "mini Wynyard".

He added: "I'm a tree lover, and whenever I remove a tree I always plant three in its place.

"I want to create a woodland estate with about 22,000 trees and shrubs."

Mr Lax said he would seek to have the proposal included in the borough council structure plan, before submitting a detailed planning application.