The Ilkley visitor information centre could soon be up for sale as Bradford Council begins a major review of its property portfolio.

The centre, on Station Road, is one of 64 council-owned properties or parts of building which are either freehold or leasehold and could be sold off as the authority looks to save more than £12m a year in running costs and more in repair bills.

Another Ilkley property being reviewed is Grove House, second Floor Offices in Riddings Road.

The estate strategy covers 286 key operational buildings and is designed to allow the council to manage its properties more efficiently and potentially save millions of pounds in running and repair costs.

Some or all of the 64 properties, could be sold and in some instances it could simply mean back office staff are moved to a different location, with the frontline service continuing, according to Council leader Ian Greenwood.

Also on the list for review are the tourist information centres in Bradford and Haworth, Bradford Register Office on Manor Row; City Road council offices; floors one to four of Kershaw House, Little Germany; lodge offices at Bowling, Horton, Lister, and Roberts parks; as well as lodges at Bingley, Nab Wood, Scholemoor and Utley cemeteries; and the Britannia House information shop on Broadway, Bradford.

The move comes as part of the Council’s estate strategy with the first phase focusing on “realising early efficiency savings from the consolidation of back office functions as this will have minimal impact on frontline service delivery”.

Any money generated will be re-invested in the Council’s remaining stock of buildings, particularly those which need improvements as a priority, as well as in works needed to free up further properties for sale.

The 286 properties cover a total floor area of 224,000 sq metres and they include 73 offices, 28 libraries, 23 residential properties, 16 youth clubs, 16 recreation centres, 15 depots, 11 old people’s homes, ten public halls, ten industrial premises, ten community homes, six museums, four cemeteries and three theatres.

These properties cost £12.4 million a year to run and there is a backlog of maintenance amounting to £35.7m. The overall estates strategy would look to reduce the floor space by 20 per cent, resulting in a saving of £1.4m a year to running costs, and a reduction in maintenance costs as well as in CO2 emissions.

Councillor Greenwood stres-sed that the consolidation of services and buildings did not mean a loss of that service, and in some instances related only to the back office function being moved.

He said: “We have got all sorts of buildings all over the place that have grown up in a random way. We are looking at the most efficient way of utilising them, and this does not mean we will be disposing of all those on the list.”

Public consultation would take place if they intended to lose any major buildings.

Ilkley councillor Anne Hawkesworth, leader of the Conservative group, said: “This appears to be making savings in services within an asset management strategy.”

She did not understand why buildings such as the information centre in Ilkley were on the list, as it was in the ideal location already.

Leader of the Liberal Democrat group, Councillor Jeanette Sunderland, was not available for comment.

John Huxley, chairman of Haworth, Cross Roads and Stanbury Parish Council, said: “Bradford always maintains that Haworth is the jewel in the crown of the district’s tourist attractions and the visitor information centre is ideally placed at the top of Main Street.

“No doubt Bradford will take the matter seriously and I do understand the financial pressure the Council is under, but they must remember this is a major asset for the village.”

The strategy report will be discussed by councillors at a meeting of the Council’s corporate overview and scrutiny committee on Wednesday, before a decision by the executive on approving the strategy and going ahead with the first phase review.