IT will severely stretch resources, potentially leave police officers vulnerable and is a "major cause for concern".

That's how a top York police officer has reacted to plans to build the city's first superclub.

Chief Inspector Andy Hirst, North Yorkshire Police's central area community safety chief, has slammed Nexus's licensing application to expand into the former Presto supermarket site.

Nexus chiefs want to treble the George Hudson Street venue's capacity to allow for 1,750 people and keep revellers dancing until 4am.

But in a letter to City of York Council licensing chiefs, Ch Insp Hirst argues that the application should be refused.

The £7 million scheme, which would include a 200-person capacity "departure lounge" to prevent crowding on the street, more pay desks to reduce queuing and a food outlet to reduce takeaway visits, will come before the authority's licensing committee on Thursday.

Ch Insp Hirst's letter claims giving the scheme the green light would bring an increase in crime and disorder, but that was refuted by Nexus chief Peter Brownsword who said the club would not bring any extra people into the area.

Ch Insp Hirst wrote: "The police are concerned that this development will attract even more people to an area which already has the highest concentration of people in the city at night time, and thereby there is a likelihood that this in turn will lead to an increase in crime and disorder.

"It would be reasonable to expect that in creating a new enlarged venue many more people would be congregating in this area and this will adversely impact on the area, beyond the control of the applicants, leading to an increase in crime and disorder incidents and nuisance problems.

"Managing additional numbers of people in the area would ultimately fall upon the police and this would mean bringing additional officers into the city centre in the early hours of the morning.

"This could only be done by redeploying officers from elsewhere across the city, to the detriment of police cover in the rest of York.

"Additionally, such large numbers leaving the night club between 3am and 4am would severely stretch police resources across the city at a time when many officers are coming to the end of their shift, potentially leaving their colleagues vulnerable."

Ch Insp Hirst said a crime survey had shown there were 617 violent crimes in the city's cumulative impact zone (in which Nexus is located), with 546 committed between 9am and 5am and 434 occurring at weekends.

He said that the police had no criticisms over the way Nexus was currently run, and conceded the current application was "well thought through".

But he concluded: "The mere fact that there is the potential for an additional 1,150 revellers in the cumulative impact zone, up to 4am and beyond, gives the police a major cause for concern."

'If we thought the application would increase crime and disorder, we wouldn't have done it'

Peter Brownsword, Nexus club manager, said an application to expand would not have been submitted had chiefs felt it would lead to more crime and disorder in the George Hudson Street area of York.

"This nightclub will not bring more people into the city. It will take care of people who are already in the city," he said.

"There is a demand there, and we are very clear and understand as a company what the situation is with regards to crime and disorder in York.

"If we thought the application would increase crime and disorder, we wouldn't have done it. Our total belief is that this application will not bring more people into the city. York is a small city, but a large town. It has got a number of circuits and all converge on one place at the end of the day. This application will take care of those people."

Mr Brownsword said he felt some assault incidents could be attributed to the unmet demand for entertainment-based nightclubs.

A report to the licensing meeting will indicate that the Nexus development would act as a catalyst to a much-needed late night bus service that had the backing of operator First.

A separate report on late night venue observations, prepared by Four Counties Licensing Services, also revealed that the number of existing nightclubs in York could not satisfy the demand in the city.

Written by Kevin Bradley, an independent licensing investigator, it concluded: "An additional nightclub within the city would alleviate some of the queuing issues and problems at the existing clubs, and would also take people off the streets at a critical time."