CAMPAIGNERS urging refusal of the Coppergate II plan will mobilise support in York this weekend.

The Castle Area Campaign group will be showing shoppers the five options for development of the Clifford's Tower-based site.

City of York Council has already given permission for an extension of the Coppergate shopping centre.

But that is subject to a public inquiry which is expected to start in January.

Campaign group co-ordinator Stella-Anne Jackson said: "We are attempting to do what the council has failed to do so far - inform the people of alternative choices to the large shopping mall next to Clifford's Tower and ask them what they really want."

Schemes on show include the Land Securities Coppergate II plan, an alternative scheme put forward by local businessman Martin Burgess, one devised by architect Tom Adams, a York Tomorrow scheme to turn the area into public parkland and a proposal to leave it as a car park.

Campaign group member Stuart Wilson said: "Our mandate has always been to represent the views of the people of York. We want the citizens' views to be taken to the public inquiry and to be taken seriously."

The stand, which will be in Parliament Street tomorrow, will ask visitors to register which scheme they prefer. The findings will be reported to the public inquiry. A spokesman for City of York Council said: "There have been years of public debate over the future of this important city centre site and a planning brief was backed by a wide range of key stakeholders more than ten years ago.

"The council's planning committee can only consider applications which are

lodged with the authority's planning office by prospective developers. Both the Land Securities application and the alternative application were

considered by the planning committee last year at some length and after a great deal of public consultation."

Updated: 09:53 Saturday, October 20, 2001