EFFORTS made to modify plans for a holiday village at Upton-upon-Severn Marina have still not pacified many local objectors.

The plan to extend the marina basin and build 60 apartments and 43 chalets now includes improved links with Upton town centre.

Developers Walton Marine have offered £20,000 towards a cycleway from the marina to Church Street and £5,000 for tourist signs at the marina and in the town centre.

They have also agreed to give £7,000 per year for three years to promote tourism and recreation initiatives in Upton and the adjoining parish of Ripple.

But the latest amendments have brought 19 more letters of objection and a petition signed by 103 people, adding to 109 letters of objection and 15 letters of support previously received.

There are strong objections to the scale of the development, the loss of open space and harm to the character of the area, as well as worries about the possible effect on flooding, but the Environment Agency is now satisfied with the proposals, subject to conditions,

Ripple Parish Council is worried about the height of a new flood bank along the A4104 and says a new continuous footpath from Holly Green to Upton is a higher priority than a cycle path.

Upton Civic Society says the scheme conflicts with the District Plan, while Upton Town Council says the latest amendments are an improvement on previous plans.

After a public meeting called by the Civic Society, Walton Marine has responded to some of the objections raised.

The original planning application involved building on 2.05 hectares of the 15.5 hectare site, but this has now been reduced to 1.62 hectares, or 11 per cent of the total site.

All the chalets and apartments will now be outside the flood plain and the chalets will be 30 metres away from the nearest houses.

Excavated soil from the new marina basin will be used partly to re-contour the site, with the remainder being removed by river to a landfill site.

Malvern Hills planning officers still have "significant concerns" about the position and prominence of chalets in the open space to the east of the marina.

They are recommending numerous conditions be imposed if the southern area planning committee decides to approve the outline plan this evening.