A slice of the compensation to be paid by one Norfolk council to another for land needed to allow construction of a multi-million-pound bridge has been agreed - but the figure is being kept secret.
Work is well under way on the £121m Great Yarmouth Third River Crossing, but for that to happen, Norfolk County Council had to obtain 13 pieces of land which belonged to Great Yarmouth Borough Council.
Some four acres of land has been permanently acquired by the county council and some taken temporarily, to be returned after construction is completed.
It includes land off Queen Anne's Road and Southgates Road, Bollard Quay, Fish and South Denes Road.
The county council has even had to acquire parts of the bed of the River Yare over which the bridge, which will link the A47 at Harfrey's roundabout to the port and the enterprise zone on the other side of the river, will cross.
The county council must pay the borough council compensation for the land.
Greg Peck, Conservative-controlled Norfolk County Council's cabinet member for commercial services and asset management, used delegated powers to approve the amount of compensation County Hall has offered the borough council.
However, that figure is not being made public, with County Hall officers arguing that information is commercially sensitive and "might prejudice the council’s ability to complete negotiations if released".
Mr Peck said: "As a major landowner in the town and in the vicinity of the river and port, the borough council held a number of sites directly affected by the land acquisition required to successfully deliver the scheme.
"Just over four acres have been permanently acquired with other sites being used temporarily during construction.
"The land was secured under General Vesting Declarations, which means legal ownership has been transferred to the county council before all compensation is finalised, which is often the case on construction schemes of this nature.
"Final compensation figures cannot be agreed until after the bridge has opened, but authorised payments are being made now to reduce the level of statutory interest that may be payable in the future."
Work on the Third River Crossing began in February 2021 and is expected to be completed next year.
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