A proposal to build luxury houses next to a children’s home in Kirkcaldy will go ahead as planned, despite a challenge by concerned councillors.
The SNP had called-in Labour’s plan to spend £1 million on the development at Raith Gates for further scrutiny amid claims the council was gambling on the property market.
Members of the environment, finance and communities scrutiny committee had the power to overturn last month’s executive committee decision, which would have sent the proposal back to the drawing board.
Fife Council wants to build five four and five-bedroom houses to sell on the open market.
They will be built next to and at the same time as the residential home for children and young people and would be of the same design.
The Labour administration argued this would allow the children to integrate with the community and said building the homes themselves, rather than selling the land to a private developer, would give the council control over timescales.
But SNP councillor Neale Hanvey accused the council of engaging in casino politics and claimed there had been a lack of detailed information.
“I believe the case for this transaction has simply not been made, considered or qualified,” he said.
“Yet we have been asked…to take the extraordinary measure of committing £1m of funding to the development of luxury homes with no indication of financial benefit to the council but a clear indication of financial risk.”
Mr Hanvey suggested the site could instead be zoned for affordable housing or for supported accommodation for the young people once they left the house.
The council’s housing spokeswoman, Councillor Judy Hamilton, said internal and external legal advice had been sought before the plan was mooted and insisted the financial risk was low.
“We can take control of the development and develop it as a single construction site,” she said.
“This is not casino politics. It’s been costed and completely risk assessed.”
Head of housing John Mills added that the site was unsuitable for an affordable housing development.
“None of the options open to us stacked up economically and would not meet the Scottish Government benchmark we are required to meet,” he said.