THE developer of the £4 million Dalgety Bay Gateway has failed in a bid to avoid paying £50,000 owed to Fife Council.

As part of the deal that eventually brought Aldi, Domino's Pizza, Greggs and a number of other businesses to the town, the Scarborough Muir Group (SMG) had agreed in 2015 to hand over the sum to offset the loss of employment land.

It wasn't paid and in June 2020 they submitted an application arguing that they shouldn't have to fork out, on the basis it was "no longer relevant or necessary" and it would make ongoing development of the site "unviable".

The matter came finally before the central and west planning committee last week where councillors rejected that view and told them the £50,000 was still due.

SMG received planning permission in principle for a £4m mixed use development on land they owned off Ridge Way, on the edge of the Donibristle and Hillend industrial estate, in July 2015.

The plans evolved and in June 2019, the new Aldi store opened for business, with the other tenants being Screwfix, Domino's, Bathroom Centre Fife, Specsavers, Subway and Greggs.

A Costa Coffee drive-thru is also planned.

To offset the loss of designated employment land, they agreed to make a financial contribution of £50,000 and a section 75 legal agreement was signed in 2016.

The money was to be paid "prior to the commencement of development" but was never received.

A supporting statement submitted on behalf of SMG argued they shouldn't have to pay as there was now a sufficient supply of employment land in Dalgety Bay.

In a report to the committee, council officers said that wasn't the case and that the £50,000 demand was fair and proportionate.

It said: "The development was significantly contrary to the development plan as it introduced retail, food and sui generis uses in an area designated for employment use in the development plan.

"The commuted sum was negotiated to offset the loss of the safeguarded employment area through securing improvements to the balance of the employment land area, making it more attractive for new employment uses and more likely to retain existing businesses."

The money was to help the council make "environmental improvements" to the industrial estate and/or buy land in Dalgety Bay to assist in the delivery of a sustainable employment land strategy.

SMG's agent also argued that "being forced to comply with the S75 agreement would render unviable the ongoing development of the site".

However, planning officers responded: "The district valuer has been instructed to make an assessment and concludes that the payment of the contribution will not make the, mainly completed, development unviable.

"On that basis and given that the developer had already agreed these figures, a contribution of £50,000 is required."

Their report added: "The development is considered viable, albeit with a lower profit/return than the applicants had hoped for."