Objectors fighting the £50million Dons stadium plan claim to be just £4,000 short of their appeals target after a flurry of donations.
The No Kingsford Stadium Group have been fundraising for a judicial review into the approving of the application and say they now have £66,000 of their £70,000 target.
In an online statement the group adds that “everything is now in the hands of our solicitors” and that the deadline to petition for a review is July 22.
The basis of the challenge will be the council’s granting of the application, which the objectors believe breached the local authority’s planning rules.
They say that the stadium and training facilities plan is against council green belt and local development policies.
The statement adds: “In the Scottish Parliament… there was a debate on a new planning bill.
“The debate was whether to give communities, such as ours, equal rights of appeal for planning decisions. Currently, developers have all the power and right to appeal – communities need more support. This bill will be too late for us unfortunately- we have no option but to challenge the Kingsford Stadium approval through the courts.”
The group declined to comment further when approached by the Press and Journal.
It has been argued that the £70,000 may not be enough if the objectors lose the appeal as they could potentially face having to pay the legal costs of the council and club too.
The club’s project director Raymond Edgar said: “It’s patently clear from all legal and planning experts that the objectors cannot stop our plans.
“They could potentially delay the project for a matter of months, but at significant cost and risk to them.
“Those donating or making pledges towards a potential judicial review should be made aware of this so that they are not wasting their money on a futile exercise that will put a drain on council resources and could damage our reputation as a region in which to invest.”
