Papers released by Fife Council show how St Andrews University officials effectively torpedoed plans for a new £40 million school in St Andrews.
A dossier produced by the authority shows that the Scottish Government was called in to oversee negotiations as damaging divisions opened.
It had been agreed that the council would build the new school on land owned by the university, while ownership of the existing Madras College building on South Street would be transferred to the university.
However, a bitter argument over respective land values ensued and, in a bid to move the issue forward, on June 17, both parties agreed to appoint an independent valuer.
Just three days later, a representative from St Andrews University intimated that the institution was “still looking at different options” for the proposed school site.
The council insists it had no option but to stall the valuation process as a result.
On June 23 there was an air of renewed optimism as, according to the council papers, the government confirmed the site had been agreed and the valuation process could proceed.
Just a day later, the university submitted four new options for the school.
Fife Council say this inevitably led to yet another damaging delay as “further analysis work” was required.’Changes of emphasis’With the writing surely on the wall, the council was within a month dealt another devastating blow as the university reportedly told the authority it would only proceed with the deal “if the valuation process comes out in its favour.”
Council officials insist such a condition had never been raised before.
On August 26, council chiefs met government civil servants and representatives of the university.
Notes from the meeting reveal that “no further progress” had been made on the valuations and that the university would “confirm its position” regarding the project on Monday.
The university duly announced it was withdrawing from the project, later citing “repeated changes of emphasis” by the council.
The council’s decision to release the timeline is sure to add further fuel to what has developed into an explosive row between the local authority and university.
Depute council leader Elizabeth Riches is in no doubt that the university’s dithering resulted in the collapse of the project.
She said: “Time and again the university changed its mind as to which piece of land it might consider suitable for the new Madras school.
“Fife Council is disappointed that the necessary land was not available for a mutually agreed price.”‘Little more than a land deal’Mrs Riches said the local authority did everything in its power to accommodate the university’s demands.
“Each time the university changed its mind on the area of land available, Fife Council chief officers had to patiently and painstakingly work out if it would be possible to build a school on the suggested site,” she continued.
“I have been dismayed and disappointed by the manner in which the university attempts to conduct business.”
However, university officials insisted they pulled out because the dream of sharing facilities at the campus had become “irrevocably diluted.”
“The new Madras had become little more than a land deal for a site disconnected from the town and the university, with minimal sharing of facilities and services,” a spokesman said.
“This was no longer the proud plan which we hoped would allow St Andrews and Fife to set a new benchmark in education and it would have been misleading to parents and pupils to pretend otherwise.”
Despite the spat, the university and council have promised to work together in the future in a bid to enhance educational opportunities.