THE future of a £2.5m harbour scheme is in doubt after plans to build boat mooring pontoons and a water resource centre were rejected.

The Whitby Harbour development, in North Yorkshire, put forward by Scarborough Borough Council, was in line for funding from the European Union.

It would have provided marina facilities, public toilets, cafe, units for small businesses, a function room and a landscaped car park.

The council's planning officers had recommended the go-ahead, but the development and regulation committee voted nine to four to turn it down.

Planning officer David Green said the design of the scheme had been revised and improved. It would benefit marina users and, while there had been criticism of the size of the resource centre, it was necessary to provide units for businesses associated with the marina.

Councillor Dorothy Clegg said the business units should be on the Whitby industrial estate and not on the harbourside because Whitby was already choked with traffic.

Head of planning services Gordon Somerville said the scheme had been developed by a group representing all harbour interests over the past year.

He said that EU funding was gravely at risk because of the need for planning permission to be given within a month.

But there was opposition from Whitby Town Council's planning committee which had labelled the design as appalling and needing more thought.

English Heritage described it as disappointing. It said: "We had hoped for a more ambitious regeneration scheme."