A final decision on a long-running legal battle between the Queen’s cousin and two north-east councils over millions of pounds of developer contributions is set to be made at the country’s highest court this week.
The Elsick Development Company (EDC) and the Aberdeen City and Shire Strategic Development Authority (SDPA) have been in dispute since 2013 when the firm successfully appealed against a £7.5million contributions bill- reducing it to just £287,000 for the 2,000 acre Chapelton of Elsick development.
In April 2016, the Court of Session agreed to the new bill after the firm went to court to argue the cash multi-million pound demand, which included contributions towards a new bridge over the River Dee and Kintore Railway Station, was unlawful.
But in December that year the two councils were given the go-ahead to appeal from Supreme Court to appeal the Court of Session decision. The result of this appeal is expected on Wednesday.
The Duke of Fife David Carnegie, who is Her Majesty’s cousin, is the director of the company while the SDPA is comprised of both Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire councils.
Originally unveiled in 2010, the new town comprises The Chapelton of Elsick £1billion is proposed – The initial masterplan outlines the development of 4,045 houses, along with all associated uses, such as shops, offices, parks and schools.
Longer-term, the Chapelton site can accommodate up to 8,000 houses within seven neighbourhoods.
The legal challenge is costing the councils around £220,000 collectively, but senior figures have warned that if it is lost then a precedent would be set potentially costing tens of millions in lost contributions into the future.
The Duke said: “We look forward to the decision of The Supreme Court as we remain very confident in the strength of our case.
“We would like to put this matter behind us and get on with the main task of continuing to make Chapelton a great place to live”.
Aberdeenshire council infrastructure chairman Peter Argyle said: “The whole strategic development fund was set up to benefit the north-east as a whole and to my mind it has been successful in doing that.
“I hope the court will uphold our position, I have no idea if that is going to be the case. There is a great deal at stake here for the north-east and the whole of Scotland.”