DEPUTY Prime Minister John Prescott will act as referee with a final decision on whether a North Yorkshire soccer club can develop new pitches in the green belt.
Members of Harrogate Borough Council planning committee yesterday voted by eight votes to six for the development by Knaresborough Celtic Football Club.
But because the land is in green belt at Thistle Hill, Knaresborough, Mr Prescott will have to make the decision.
The project for six pitches, a 50-space car park and a large pavilion brought letters of protest from objectors, Follyfoot with Plompton Parish Council and the Campaign to Protect Rural England.
Council planning officer Neville Watson recommended refusal saying the scale of development would detract from open countryside.
A spokesman for the club stressed the important of the development, which includes a full-sized pitch, two youth pitches and three mini pitches.
There would also be four changing rooms, use of the site as a training venue and a refreshment area.
Linda Potter, chairman of the local Campaign to Protect Rural England, said the scale of development would harm the green belt.
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