Fears for £75m town centre revamp

The regeneration scheme is part-funded by the government

The main company involved in the £75m regeneration of St Austell has gone into administration.

David McLean Developments, which has a turnover of £160m and employs about 320 people, has been hit by the property downturn, said administrators.

Work started in October last year on new shops, bars and cafes in a revamp of the town centre.

But officials believe the scheme could be saved because the contract is with a subsidiary of David McLean.

The government-funded Regional Development Agency (RDA) is investing £31.5m in the project, with the rest coming from David McLean.

The project is hugely important to St Austell and the surrounding area and we will be doing everything we can to keep it on track Theo Leijser, RDA

Theo Leijser, the RDA's area director for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, said: "The St Austell town centre regeneration scheme is being developed by White River Developments Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of David McLean Developments Ltd, with funding from the RDA.

"David McLean Developments Ltd today went into administration, however White River Developments is still trading so there does not appear to be any immediate risk to the town centre scheme, although we are continuing to monitor the situation very closely."

He added: "The project is hugely important to St Austell and the surrounding area and we will be doing everything we can to keep it on track."

In an interview for the BBC, the joint administrator, Nick Edwards, estimated the amount of money owed by the company "will run into many millions, getting towards a hundred million".

He added he was hoping to sell parts of the business, including elements of the housebuilding division.