PLANNERS will take more than a year to decide on York's massive Hungate redevelopment scheme.

The project to build 720 homes on land off Stonebow - submitted to City of York Council in November 2002 - will not go before its planning committee until at least February 2004.

The Government recommends that major planning applications should be considered if possible within 13 weeks.

The delays in dealing with this scheme have been rapped by the Hungate Community Trust, the independent watchdog set up to ensure the development meets the needs of the community.

"It's very disappointing," said chairman Gordon Campbell-Thomas. "I would not like to see matters dealt with with undue haste, but this is far too long.

"We believe this scheme will revitalise the city centre and should be supported."

Cliff Carruthers, the council's head of development control, said the delay had been caused by the need to conduct a study of the impact on traffic in the area, caused not only by the Hungate scheme but also other re-development plans.

These included the scheme to build a retail park on the Foss Islands Road council depot site and Sainsbury's plans to expand its store at Foss Bank.

He said it was likely that the traffic study's results would be put to committee in January, with the Hungate application probably going to the committee the following month.

The Hungate proposals have been submitted by Hungate (York) Regeneration Ltd - a joint venture headed by Crosby Homes (Yorkshire) Ltd, and backed by Evans Property Group and Land Securities.

Phil Darcy, managing director of Crosby, said that with large schemes of this nature, there were many people to consult and many issues to discuss.

The developers were continuing to work closely with the council in the hope the application could come to the committee as quickly as possible.

"Through the community planning process and the subsequent public exhibition that we held in January, it became clear that the vast majority of local people were in favour of the proposals that we have put forward for creation of a new urban neighbourhood, and they are keen to see an early start on regeneration of the Hungate area," he said.

The length of time taken to consider the Hungate scheme contrasts with another major project, the Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust's proposals to build a 540-home new village on council-owned land near Osbaldwick.

An outline application was submitted to the authority in August, since when there have been furious protests from local residents about the extra traffic that will be created on proposed access routes into the new village in Meadlands, Fifth Avenue, Temple Avenue and Osbaldwick.

But the council is hoping to consider the proposal before the end of the year, which might allow work to start by next summer.

Updated: 08:32 Wednesday, October 01, 2003