A ROW has erupted over plans to extend a car showroom into the green belt of a northern suburb of York.

Mike Sharp, owner of car dealership Centurion Audi, wants to buy a six-metre-wide strip of the Clifton Moorgate field to provide a display area for his cars.

Rawcliffe Junior Football Club have expressed "delight" at the proposal, as they want to lease the remainder of the field to play football.

They claim they have outgrown the land they currently lease, adjacent to the field.

But Clifton Without Parish Council has written to City of York Council objecting to the sale, stating the whole of the green belt should be protected.

A sum of £70,000 has been provisionally negotiated between Mr Sharp for the strip of land, which is owned by the City of York Council.

The sale price is in excess of its market value as commercial development land.

If the sale went ahead, part of the capital receipt could then be used to make the currently unused field accessible to the public.

Council officers previously advised management of the field, plus a £25,000 dowry from the capital receipt of the sale, should be transferred to the council's education and leisure services department to make the field suitable to play football on.

In a letter to the council, joint chairman of the football club Peter Renton said he hoped the full potential of the field could be developed to everyone's advantage.

He said: "Due to the rapid growth in numbers of people in the area, we are getting more and more children, both girls and boys wanting to play football.

"Consequently we have completely outgrown our present facilities and with a further two 11-a-side teams starting next season, we are desperate to increase the number of pitches we can use."

Members have been advised to approve the sale, providing Mr Sharp obtains satisfactory planning permission for the development and proceeds with the sale.

The sale will be discussed at York Guildhall, on Monday, March 15, at 5.30pm.

Updated: 08:21 Tuesday, March 09, 2004