A debate over controversial plans for a 27-storey tower block in Woolwich has been cancelled at the "11th hour" after the developers allegedly threatened a legal battle.

Meyer Homes was set to have its scheme for an 800-home tower near Tesco thrown out by councillors tonight after an official report dubbed it "overdevelopment".

In light of the damning report, the developer submitted new information and threatened a legal challenge if a decision was to be made this evening.

Deputy leader of Greenwich Council, Dan Thorpe, said the developer had behaved appallingly.

He said in a tweeted statement: "Their lawyers contacted us to advise of a legal challenge if we proceeded with the decision. This meant that if we went ahead with the meeting and took a decision, we would potentially be subjected to a legal challenge.

"This information could and should have been provided by the applicant well before now and the fact that the applicant is seeking to delay the democratic process at the 11th hour is in my view appalling."

A note sent to objectors by the council, and seen by News Shopper, explained further the reason behind the cancellation: "Following the threat of a legal challenge from the Applicant in respect of planning application 17/2812/F the Council has been asked by the applicant to consider further information in relation to the Environmental Statement.

"As part of the requirements of the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations 2011/1824 the Council is required to undertake further consultation on the new information.

"In the light of this, Planning Board scheduled for 20th March 2018 is cancelled. The application will be presented to a future Planning Board meeting and you be informed of this new date when it is agreed.

"All representations that have already been received remain valid and will be taken into account when considering this application."

The council received 224 objections to the plans, compared to just three people supporting it.

Resident campaign group Speak Out Woolwich has a petition with more than 1,600 signatures opposing the plans and will still lobby outside Woolwich town hall tomorrow night at a separate council meeting.

John Edwards, a spokesman for the group, said in a statement: "This seems to us to be delaying tactics by the developer, presumably to give them more time to prepare a response to the council's very thorough report recommending rejection of the application.

"It is disappointing, but no surprise, that the developer is doing all it can to find ways of pushing this application through against the wishes of local people and to the benefit of shareholders and speculators.

"So the campaign to stop this goes on. The earliest this can now go to planning board will be May."

News Shopper:

This is what the project would look like

In its petition, Speak Out said: "We need housing that works for everyone. The Meyer Homes’ plan, unfortunately, falls very short of achieving this."

Meyer Homes' plan is its latest for Woolwich town centre, and proposed three buildings between nine and 16 storeys as well as a 27-storey centrepiece.

The developer included 20 per cent - or 161 - affordable homes in the plan, below what officers said was acceptable. There are no social rented units onsite.

The scheme is part of a larger project that was granted permission back in 2007, including the development of Tesco.

Officers said the application should be blocked, highlighting: "The development by reason of the overall quantum, tenure type and mix of the affordable housing, fails to provide the maximum deliverable amount of affordable housing at a tenure and mix which meets the identified need of residents within the Borough."

The plan was also criticised for its height and scale, with officers saying it would be "unacceptably dominating and overbearing" and create a "unbalanced and dominant relationship" with nearby listed buildings.

News Shopper:

The proposed view from General Gordon Square towards the development 

Meyer Homes said: "We have been consulting and working locally to bring forward this planning application over the past two years since acquiring the sites from Tesco. This application is for the last two pieces of this new exciting quarter in Woolwich.

"Our ethos is to design great places and connect our projects within the local area to help foster economic development and make communities a better place to live and work.

"The future for the centre of Woolwich is a very exciting place to be, given the recent Street Feast success, Crossrail and the arrival of a newly vamped high street which will bring forward leisure, retail and commercial opportunity.

"Our proposal has been thoughtfully designed to support this regeneration by providing good quality homes and employment opportunities to the area.

"We are working through how we can deliver as many affordable homes as possible to help support accessible living in the town centre and also reviewing how we can deliver the proposed workspace for starter businesses again to encourage economic development and jobs.

"As part of our ongoing review and following recent feedback, we have been testing a lower scale building on Phase 3, opposite General Gordon Square which we are now discussing with the Council. Once we have had further local consultation we will be able to assess how the project can move forwards to complete this exciting new quarter for Woolwich.”