After months of delays and a bitter legal wrangle, work has finally started to transform part of Neats Court with a Morrisons supermarket.

The purchase of the land by developer LXB Retail Properties was completed on Tuesday last week and contractor Kier was immediately given access to the site.

The £30 million plan for the Queenborough development also includes a petrol station, KFC drive-through and family pub.

There will also be a number of shops, and earlier this year LXB announced that DIY giant B&Q, footwear retailer Brantano and home furnishings chain B&M Stores have all shown an interest in moving in.

This week, it has also been revealed that talks are ongoing with Pets At Home about setting up shop there.

Work had been due to start on the development, off the A249, in the summer, but it was complicated after rival developer Citygrove launched a legal bid to overturn the scheme.

Citygrove had hoped to build a Sainsbury’s store at the former HBC Engineering site in Power Station Road, Halfway, but the chain pulled out.

The developer then launched a judicial review claim against Morrisons at the High Court which meant nothing could happen at Neats Court while this was dealt with.

Citygrove withdrew its legal action at the start of August, and since then LXB has been working to get things up and running.

It is hoped the completion of the supermarket and KFC will be late April or May 2013 and the two firms will then fit out their units, with trading anticipated to begin in early summer. The start of work has been welcomed by Minster resident Paula Garrett, who started a petition to try to stop Citygrove’s legal bid.

She said: “It’s good to see it starting finally. I can’t wait for it to all start taking shape and see that all our work was successful.”

Giles Haywood from LXB said there is also good news in that they are in the process of submitting a revised planning application for the retail space due to having a good level of interest from businesses.

It is hoped the non-food retail floorspace for the development will be increased from 40,000 sq ft to 67,500 sq ft, which will hopefully create a further 100 to 125 jobs in addition to the 300 Morrisons and KFC will bring.

Mr Haywood said: “The activity on the site this week will involve site set-up and delivery of materials.

“In terms of the retail demand, we are in discussions with a number of national retailers who are interested in coming to the Isle of Sheppey including Pets at Home and TJ Morris (trading as Home Bargains).

“Importantly, they all see Sheppey as a catchment in its own right, and alongside Morrisons, the development will arrest much of the trade that is being lost off the Island annually.”