BOLTON'S closed down Water Place swimming complex looks set to be bulldozed in May.

Council chiefs are currently considering which company will win the contract to carry out the demolition work.

Once the firm has been decided, workmen will pull down what was once the leisure jewel in Bolton's crown. What will take its place has yet to be decided. But the council -- reeling from the embarrasment the closure has caused -- will be looking to quickly sell the site for £2 million.

While a buyer is found, the site will be levelled and tidied up to help prevent it from becoming an eyesore.

Privately, it is hoped a leisure developer could be enticed on to the site to kick-start the fortunes of an area of town which many councillors believe is in need of redevelopment.

Stuart Knight, head of corporate property at the local authority, said: "We are currently looking at the demolition tenders and we believe a deal will be signed and sealed within two months."

The Water Place, which was opened in 1988, needed £4.5 million of repairs.

Local authority chiefs have now ordered a feasibility study into the possibility of opening a new town centre swimming pool. The council has opened talks with Sport England.

Swimming complexes across the country have been suffering in recent years. Blackpool's Sandcastle, it was announced last week, will be demolished and an aquarium will be built on the site in a revamp of the seaside town.

The Sandcastle's ailing fortunes are being blamed on a lack of interest from members of the public. Bosses of the Water Place used the same excuse as the number of users dropped by around 100,000 people-a-year while at the same time maintenance bills rose.