A BLISTERING attack has been launched against an architectural body by York’s council leader – who has accused them of trying to put “a spanner in the works” over the massive Terry’s development.

The £165 million scheme for the former chocolate factory in Bishopthorpe Road was given the go-ahead by City of York Council this week and is expected to create up to 2,700 new jobs as well as hundreds of homes, two new hotels, shops, bars and restaurants once it is completed.

But Coun Andrew Waller said the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) – which offers guidance on development schemes – could have put vital jobs at risk after its objections to the Terry’s revamp were submitted only days before the decision was made.

In a letter to the council, CABE design review advisor Jonathan Freeman said the organisation supported the scheme “in principle”, but the proposals had not been “translated into a convincing masterplan”.

He said design issues needed further consideration and said: “We think the application should not be permitted in its current form.”

At a meeting of the full council this week, Coun Waller pulled no punches in his anger at the late arrival of CABE’s objections, saying: “Such a lot of effort had gone into meeting the expectations and pressures of the scheme that it was with astonishing tactlessness that CABE dropped their spanner in the works within 48 hours of the planning meeting.

“That a publicly funded body attempted to jeopardise jobs in this city is unbelievable at this time, and I would invite that organisation up to the city to see first-hand what they were commenting on and to explain themselves.”

Grantside, the site’s developer, says building work on the project – which drew opposition over fears it may cause traffic problems – could start late this year and take between five and eight years to complete.