Milton Keynes warehouse: New review could cost £150,000

Richard and Davina Scholefield are among residents who have opposed the warehouse

A review into how an "oppressive" warehouse was allowed to be built could cost more than £150,000.

Milton Keynes Council previously appointed planning expert Marc Dorfman to report on the planning process around Blakelands Warehouse in 2019.

Mr Dorfman resigned without completing his report.

The authority's audit committee is now set to consider appointing barrister Tim Straker.

The 18m-high (59ft) warehouse, with 20,522 sq m (220,900 sq ft) of floorspace, has been described as a "monstrosity".

The warehouse is 3,000 sq m (32,291 sq ft) bigger and at least 6.5m (21ft) taller than the John Lewis unit it replaced

Residents raised concerns about the process that led to the development being approved, including an error which meant 13 separate conditions were not included in legal letters.

As a result Mr Dorfman was appointed by the Labour-controlled authority in 2019 to review the decision. His report should have been published the same year.

Following Mr Dorfman's resignation earlier this year, the council's audit committee started the process to appoint a barrister or retired high court judge to carry out the review.

It must now approve or refuse the appointment of Mr Straker, a barrister and sitting deputy high court judge.

That decision will be made at a meeting on 23 September.

This drone picture shows the size of the warehouse and its proximity to housing

An audit report said Mr Straker's quote "is £150,000 plus VAT".

It added Mr Straker hopes "his report will be published in January/February" but warned both time and cost were an estimate.

Mr Straker's quote is considerably higher than the £20,000 Mr Dorfman had been set to receive. In the end, Mr Dorfman did not bill the council,

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Blakelands Residents' Association said it believed Mr Straker "is more than qualified" to lead the review.

It said while £150,000 "is a substantial amount of money," it expected Mr Straker's appointment to be confirmed given the council would have been aware of the cost when it chose to pursue a barrister.

Milton Keynes Council said commissioning the review was a matter for the audit committee to decide.