Infirmary sale is hit by property slump

Wolverhampton's landmark Eye Infirmary has been pulled off the market, health bosses admitted today.

Bosses had hoped the landmark building in Chapel Ash would be snapped up within weeks of going up for sale when its services were transferred to New Cross Hospital.

But its future is still in doubt a year-and-a-half after closing its doors. Hospital bosses were close to agreeing a multi-million pound deal with developers earlier this year and took the property off the market. But the deal to transform the Compton Road site into 100 flats fell through.

Bosses today said that they were currently reviewing the property market before deciding when to put the historic site back up for sale.

Gary Penn, director of estates at Wolverhampton NHS Trust, said: "We are reviewing the market conditions at the moment and when we consider it a suitable time to put it back on.

"We took all the boards down during our negotiations and haven't put it back on yet. It is in our best interest to review the market."

Bosses had initially hoped the sale of the old infirmary would generate around £3 million to be ploughed back into health services and the long-awaited transformation of New Cross Hospital.

But Wolverhampton City Council said that a downturn in the property market had prevented the building, which has some parts dating back to 1856, being snapped up sooner.

Councillor Malcolm Gwinnettk, chairman of Wolverhampton City Council's planning committee, said: "It has been taken off the market due to economic climate. It's in the best interest of the trust to get as much money as they can else the cash would have be drained from hospital resources."

Infirmary services were transferred to New Cross Hospital at the beginning of March 2007 in a £4.5million move.

And weeks ago bosses announced the services would be moved again under redevelopment plans for the hospital.

The first phase of the redevelopment will cost £100 million and includes creating a new emergency centre, catering facilities and a pathology