KEIGHLEY'S troubled civic centre building could once again be home to the police.

A letter has been sent to West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Mark Burns-Williamson, suggesting the controversial site as a base for the town's bobbies.

The North Street premises formerly housed the police station before the force relocated to Royd Ings Avenue.

Now the current Airedale House HQ is under review.

And the closure of cells, cuts to helpdesk opening times and removal of CID officers have sparked fears it will close.

Keighley town councillor Anayat Mohammad said reuse by the police was among options for the civic centre.

He has written to Mr Burns-Williamson.

"We're aware there's confusion around the police station and that Keighley needs a police presence," said Cllr Mohammad, chairman of the town council's strategy committee.

"We have a building which could once again be a prime site for a police station."

The committee is tasked with finding a way forward for the building and a proposal could go before the next full town council meeting on March 16.

Details of the recommendation are still being drawn-up.

Cllr Mohammad has voiced concerns about any move to sell off the premises, warning that the town council would lose a lot of money.

"The public consultation we carried out into the civic centre was very positive and two really clear themes came out of it," he said.

"One was that Keighley's public wants to see the building retained in some way so it's a benefit to the community. The second clear direction we were given is that it should be sold.

"As elected members we'll always try to do our best for the public and for the council.

"The option of selling the building has been considered in great detail. But what we found is that if we do go down that route – and I'm not saying we won't – we stand to lose a considerable amount of money.

"As committee chairman, this would not be something I could easily agree to.

"The committee has been having in-depth discussions with a number of organisations with a view to seeing if they can be brought into the civic centre.

"But these discussions, which are still ongoing, haven't satisfied us yet."

The civic centre opened as a police and forensic science museum in 2012, after the town council bought and converted the empty building using two loans totalling £1.1 million.

But the centre was later revealed to be losing money, and in June last year the council confirmed it was then having to spend about £180,000 a year just on maintaining it.

Although the museum –along with a cafe and gift shop in the building – no longer operates, the civic centre does accommodate the town council's administrative office and hosts meetings by dance groups and other organisations.

Earlier this year, town councillors decided to seek additional quotations for the cost of fixing the building's ailing central heating system, after being quoted prices ranging from under £20,000 to more than £84,000.

Cllr Mohammad said: "Almost every member of the public we come across asks us what's going to happen to the civic centre, so it's high on our agenda.

"If there was an easy answer we'd have found it by now."