Ambitious plans for an £18 million marina at Herne Bay have been ditched by Canterbury City Council as too expensive and risky.

It follows a £10,740 feasibility study by consultants which revealed the cost would be more than treble the £5 million first estimated.

Now officers have concluded the development "does not stack up" as a viable enterprise.

The idea for the marina was originally floated by town councillors Andrew Cook and Joe Howes.

They believed that together with the revived pier, it would continue the rejuvenation of the town’s fortunes.

Council leader, Cllr Simon Cook (Con) thought it was an "absolutely brilliant" scheme. But he warned it needed to attract a serious investor on board as the authority could not pay for it.

Now members of the council’s regeneration and property committee have decided the council should not to pursue the idea - although the door remains open for discussions with any entrepreneur who did come forward with a serious proposal and investment.

In a report to the meeting last night, the council’s head of business and regeneration, Caroline Hicks said: "While it has been considered a potential flagship project for Herne Bay for a number of years, the background and feasibility work undertaken to date suggests that the long-term financing costs, marginal profit and investor risk do not stack up against the assumed regeneration benefits."

She also said that if the council wanted to take the project to the next stage, it would have to commit "significant finance".

The consultants believed that although there could be demand for the proposed 150 berth marina in Herne Bay, it would take several years to achieve high occupancy.

They also feared the profitability would be ‘marginal’, especially if a lease had to be paid to the city council.

Their report concluded the project was unlikely to be attractive to an investor or developer.