Former Wimbledon star David Lloyd has lodged an appeal against the refusal of planning permission for a tennis centre at Monks Cross.

A public inquiry looks set to be held in the spring into the £9 million proposals by Next Generation Clubs, which were turned down by City of York Council planners in June.

But City of York Council hopes an inquiry might still not be needed if an alternative site can be found for the centre.

A council spokesman said the authority and Next Generation had been looking at "two or three" possible sites, the locations of which could not be disclosed at this stage.

He said the appeal had been lodged as a stop-gap or safety net, in case negotiations for an alternative site did not come to fruition.

The Monks Cross application was turned down because councillors feared it might jeopardise their chances of turning nearby green belt land into a prime employment site for the future.

But the scheme won widespread support in the summer from York's tennis players, who protested that the city had no indoor facilities where they could play in winter.

An Evening Press petition in support of the centre was signed by more than 2,700 people.

The appeal was lodged with the council before Christmas, just as the six-month deadline for appeals was reached.

A spokesman for Next Generation was unavailable for comment today.

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