Understandably Richard Clark (Letters, October 11) is worried over the reduction in the amount of employment land being proposed for the York Central site.

We were told initially that the creation of a large, dynamic business district was the prime driver of the development and the only way in which it could be made financially viable.

We now suspect that the economic return expected by the Partnership will rely on the amount developers are prepared to pay for the various housing plots which the Partnership will eventually put on the open market.

We all know that with the industry-accepted 20 per cent profit margin which developers expect, hardly any of these units will be affordable in any meaningful sense of the word.

There is no indication at this stage as to how this housing is to be provided, the mix of tenures proposed, and what enforcement action, if any, the council will be able or willing to undertake to ensure that maximum benefits are gained for our residents.

Who is to pay for the community facilities which will be needed by this population of more than 5,000?

Who will ensure that the housing space standards provided will be adequate, when volume housebuilders are eager to market their products with the lowest floor spaces in Europe?

While the Partnership assures us that housing needs across the board will be met, we still do not know how this laudable aim will be realised, and how much reliance is being placed on “the market” to achieve it.

Philip Crowe,

Clifton, York