A council has doubled down after a major residential developer claimed it could no longer afford money promised to help a community.

Gillcrest Homes this month told Canterbury City Council (CCC) its £60k contribution pledge – made in return for converting 24 flats in the city - was now “unaffordable”.

But the authority clapped back this week warning it would pursue the Rochester developer for the cash “as per the legal agreement” it entered.

In 2019, Gillcrest agreed to shell out the section 106 money to the city council when it green-lit plans to transform the former tannery in Stour Street into homes.

The funding is given to provide facilities to a community following a development in the area.

But the property developer recently launched a bid to have the amount slashed to little over £1k, telling the authority costs had spiralled to £9.25 million - more than £385,000 per home.

In response, a city council spokesman told KentOnline: "The application submitted by Gillcrest Homes to vary the legal agreement relating to its development in Stour Street is invalid.

"An application to vary a legal agreement cannot be made within five years of the agreement being signed and we are still within this time period.

"On that basis, we will therefore be pursuing the contributions required of the developer towards pedestrian and open space improvements as per the legal agreement we have in place."

The developer, which completed the project in 2021 and currently rents out units, argued it had “demonstrated that the site, if developed in the current economic climate, would be unviable and that the contributions agreed to are unaffordable”.

They pointed the finger at a raft of unforeseen expenses; protecting the heavily contaminated building’s facade and surroundings, and the cost-of-living crisis hiking building material prices.

It came as part of a case made earlier this month in official council papers, in a bid to pay just £1,296 – money which would be used for new library books.

When first agreed, a transport contribution of £31k was set aside for pedestrian access improvements where Rheims Way meets the Great Stour, including new paths and an access ramp.

Another £32k was pledged as part of an open space contribution – specifically for the improvement of Dane John Gardens.

In papers submitted to the city council, the developer says open space improvements have already been paid for by central government thanks to the Levelling Up bid – meaning it should not have to pay out.

It also claimed the footpaths in this vicinity are in good repair and are generally level there the requirement to improve them is not required.

Both of these contributions are now expected to be paid into the council’s coffers.

Gillcrest Homes have been contacted for comment.

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Originally set to be transformed into a 40-bed luxury hotel by Hotel Du Vin 16 years ago, the site was long-empty before Gillcrest arrived on the scene – having shut as a working tannery in 2002.

The closure of the site marked the end of more than 200 years of tanning and leather work within the city walls.

The Merchants Row and Squire Lofts properties offer a range of two-bed to four-bed properties within the city walls a five-minute walk from the High Street.

Planning obligations, also known as Section 106 agreements (based on that section of The 1990 Town & Country Planning Act) are private agreements made between local authorities and developers and can be attached to a planning permission to make acceptable development which would otherwise be unacceptable in planning terms.