Kingask: Court action possible

Michael Alexander & Gordon Berry, The Courier, 23 Feb 2000

A member of the administration of Fife Council has repeated the claim that the local authority is prepared to take legal action to control the number of construction lorries entering and leaving the site of the £50 million Kingask development near St Andrews.

The chairman of the strategic development committee, Bill Brand, said action would be taken if agreement was not reached with the developers, St Andrews Bay Development Company, as a "matter of urgency."

It is more than a month since Councillor Brand said the developers had "let the authority down" by breaching a legal agreement, and that "absolute assurances" were being sought from them that they would comply with obligations.

In the meantime lorry numbers have continued to breach the agreement and North East Fife MP Menzies Campbell has said the council’s protests have a "hollow ring."

Local councillor Peter Douglas has been equally sceptical, and has accused the council of being prepared to "roll over, put up its paws, and let the developers do exactly what they wanted."

The issue was raised at the strategic development committee on January 24 and at last week’s full council meeting.

Mr Brand said in a statement, "The head of law and administration has prepared legal proceedings for service on the developer if there is not a satisfactory outcome to discussions.

"The developer has accepted the seriousness of the situation and the importance the council attaches to resolving this matter urgently.

"As a result, progress is being made in discussions and I would expect to know if agreement can be reached by next week. If not, the council will proceed to court."

Mr Brand also confirmed that Fife Council chief executive Douglas Sinclair would be replying to Councillor Frances Melville’s call for immediate court action.

He said the option of legal action to enforce the Section 75 agreement would be exercised by the council if required.

As reported in The Courier yesterday, Mrs Melville wrote to Mr Sinclair at the weekend in her capacity as the new chairman of Fife Council’s East Area development committee.

She pointed out that she had vigorously argued during the Kingask application process that the legal agreement put in place to control the number of HGV vehicle trips per day was "unenforceable."

An official council count of vehicles found that on one day recently over five times the permitted number of vehicle movements took place.

Mrs Melville warned that the council and planning service would lose all credibility-or what remained of any credibility-if action was not taken. She also had concerns for the safety of local communities which had to endure huge vehicles travelling on almost any road and at all times to and from Kingask.

Last night Mrs Melville said she was pleased to hear that the council was prepared to act, but she emphasised that there must be no delay.

She said that while attending a site meeting yesterday she had seen six Kingask-bound lorries on a road they are not permitted to use.

"I would like to know how that is being monitored," she said.