PLANS for a £60m retail park to bring 500 jobs to a North-East town were in jeopardy last night after council officials branded the scheme "fundamentally flawed".

Developers were confident that their blueprint for the former Torrington Engineering plant, in Yarm Road, Darlington, would boost the local economy.

They want to transform the site into a 260,000sq ft complex, with a DIY business providing the town's biggest retail store - more than 25 per cent bigger than the B&Q warehouse at nearby Morton Park.

There would also be smaller units selling household and electrical goods, along with a builders' yard, garden centre, two fast-food takeaways and parking for nearly 1,000 cars.

The development has been designed to regenerate an area hit by the closure of the Torrington site, with the loss of 104 jobs, nearly three years ago.

But Darlington Borough Council is expected to throw out the scheme - produced by Yorkshire-based Commercial Development Properties - when it comes before planners next week.

The authority's planning committee will debate the matter on Wednesday, and town hall officers are urging councillors to reject the idea because it contains fundamental flaws.

In a report to the committee, officers reveal their concerns about the development.

The Campaign to Protect Rural England, the North-East Assembly, the Highways Agency and regional development agency One NorthEast also have doubts.

No one from Commercial Development Properties was available for comment last night.

Officers are also concerned about the potential impact on town centre trade - as is One NorthEast - while the site is said to be inconvenient for pedestrians and cyclists.

The Highways Agency said a traffic assessment was incomplete, failing to take into account conditions on the roads, including the nearby A66 bypass.