THE Silver Hill scheme has endured another tough test. Winchester City Council voted against ending the £150 million development deal at a tense summit on Thursday night – but the Liberal Democrats moved to keep the option open and won.

Debate rumbled on for well over three hours, so for those who couldn't attend, here are five things we took from the meeting:

Anti-Silver Hill campaigners are very upset
More than 150 residents crammed into Winchester Guildhall last night, with many jeering, booing and waving signs at councillors defending the project. Tempers flared as council leader Stephen Godfrey listed the scheme's features, while his claims that retendering could take five or six years were met with laughs. The overpowering noise mostly subsided when the Mayor threatened to end the meeting, but that didn't stop them making their voices heard. It's not clear how many in the public gallery supported the scheme, but its opponents were by far the most vocal.

There's a lot we don't know about the scheme
Councillors voted by 43 to eight to avoid termination because "the necessary information for a fully informed decision is not available". Many questions were left unanswered on Thursday: over the effect that starting again would have on the council and city, the potential threat of a damages claim from TH Real Estate and more.

But one useful figure did emerge, albeit uncertainly, from Cllr Godfrey. Asked by former housing chief Ian Tait how much public money might be spent on devising a new scheme and getting it to the brink of development, Cllr Godfrey said: "Allowing for the to-ing and fro-ing in recent years on the existing development costs, a figure of £10 million might not be unreasonable."

Hampshire Chronicle:

The potential threat of a damages claim from the developer has not gone away
Cllr Rose Burns, a criminal barrister, asked the leader if there were reasons to fear TH Real Estate might claim damages if the council walks away.

"I'm sure there are," Cllr Godfrey said.

"As you know, a lawyer can find an awful lot of loopholes, a lot of anomalies, a lot of opportunities for challenge in the dark recesses of a contract. I have not been made aware of any that we should be concerned about, but that doesn't mean they are not there."

TH Real Estate has invested millions in the scheme already and, according to Cllr Gottlieb, rumours are spreading about the danger.

The developer still has work to do - and it's taking a while
TH Real Estate hopes to start building in the winter – but the meeting heard it is taking them longer than expected to tick the final boxes. The developer has to prove to the council that the scheme is financially viable before work can start. There are another technical terms to be met which the council – and its specially-hired advisors – have not had time to evaluate yet. City officers postponed a special council meeting, scheduled for next week, to consider TH Real Estate's submissions. It will now happen at "a later date," said chief executive Simon Eden.

Hampshire Chronicle:

Changes to the project are still possible
"What we need to be obsessed about is getting a better scheme for Winchester – better than the one we have today," said Lib Dem councillor Martin Tod.

He claimed some elements of the project over the years – such as a youth club and new building for the Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes – were changed because they were not part of the development agreement, which the vote concerned. The same could happen again, he said, adding: "We need to see improvements and if we don't see the improvements we have to have the ability to terminate."

Stephen Whetnall, chief operating officer, said it would be "very difficult" to make major changes to features like the bus station or housing, but confirmed that small tweaks were possible.

One thing we didn't learn: What's next for Winchester Deserves Better?
Cllr Gottlieb was hesitant to tell the Chronicle what's in store for his anti-Silver Hill campaign. The dissident Conservative councillor has already beaten civic chiefs in the High Court once and may try to do so again if TH Real Estate push the project through.

But pressed for specifics, Cllr Gottlieb said: "We will pursue every legal means possible, commercial means possible, whatever route possible to ensure that this city gets the scheme that it properly deserves, not the one that's about to be foisted upon it."