A DISCOUNT supermarket company has abandoned plans to build on derelict land in Rainham.

Lidl has put the old Co-op site in the High Street up for sale for a rumoured £1million -nearly double the £600,000 purchase price less than 18 months ago.

The company is understood to have withdrawn from the scheme because of various problems with access.

Many in Rainham saw the plans as a way to regenerate the town and now fear the site will just stay derelict.

Mike O'Brien, of nearby Mike O'Brien Insurance Services, said: "Our reaction is of extreme disappointment. We were looking forward to a new owner of the site and we feel rather let down."

Mr O'Brien called on Medway Council to regenerate Rainham in the same way as it was attempting to do with Rochester Riverside.

More parking was particularly important, he said, because many believed that was why Lidl decided to pull out.

It is also thought Lidl was facing a huge bill to secure an ancient right of way from behind the site.

Soon after the company bought the land in 2000, Medway Council granted planning permission for a 1,200 square metre supermarket, doctor's surgery, and nine flats, with vehicle access from the High Street and pedestrian access from Station Road.

Lidl would have paid for infrastructure improvements, including replacement of nearby bus stops.

Last autumn, the council threatened to serve notice on Lidl if it did not deal with rats and board up a building on the site thought to be a safety risk.

Lidl declined to comment on any aspect of the development.