A COUNCILLOR who fought a High Court battle against plans for a visitor centre below Clifford’s Tower has reached the half-way point in efforts to recoup his £55,000 legal bill.

Now Johnny Hayes is launching a fresh drive to raise as much as possible of the outstanding £27,500, with a fundraising music event also being planned at a York pub.

The Independent councillor applied for judicial review in 2016 after councillors gave planning permission for the building.

He was left about £41,000 out of pocket last month when English Heritage scrapped the controversial scheme before the case could get to an appeal hearing, at which he could have sought costs had he won.

He said yesterday that his legal bill had been reduced from £60,000 to £55,000 after he had withdrawn the appeal, and a further £10,000 had been donated by supporters, so that by August 19, £27,500 had been raised, leaving him and his wife Frankie £27,500 out of pocket from their personal savings.

He said he wanted to thank everyone who had donated so generously but was now setting up a new crowd funding site, www.gofundme.com/not-in-the-motte-legal-fund

“We do not anticipate raising all of this amount,” he said. “We would be very grateful to reduce this amount with any further donations from people who have supported the Not in the Motte Campaign or are just relieved that the Visitor Centre building will not be built in the motte.”

He said a fundraising night would be held by supporters at the Winning Post in Bishopthorpe Road on Friday, September 28, with live music, tombola, raffle and an auction of promises, ranging from a weekend in Wales to an opportunity to record music in a recording studio. There would be no entry charge but donations would be welcome.