Argyll and Bute Council has decided not to continue with the current procurement procedure regarding the contract for the Helensburgh town centre and West Bay public realm works.

The authority intends to re-tender the works as soon as possible.

The decision was made after concerns were raised by one of the original tenderers regarding the evaluation procedure.

Douglas Hendry, the council’s executive director of customer services, stressed that the situation would have no impact on the scale or quality of the works to be carried out.

“Having assessed the concerns raised and taken independent legal advice, we have decided that the best and most proportionate course of action is to stop the current procurement procedure and re-tender the contract,” he said.

“This in no way jeopardises our plans for Helensburgh, which represent the most major improvement works the town has undergone for decades. The scope and scale of the proposed improvements will remain the same.

“We will of course do everything we can to ensure that a new procurement procedure is successfully completed as soon as possible, to enable work to start on the ground in the summer of 2012.”

The £6.6million Helensburgh project is part of Argyll and Bute Council’s £30million CHORD programme, which aims to regenerate the waterfront areas of its five biggest towns – Campbeltown, Helensburgh, Oban, Rothesay and Dunoon.

In Helensburgh, the specific elements include upgrading the streetscape environment in the town centre’s principal shopping areas; upgrading the area outside Helensburgh Central Station; creating an open space in Colquhoun Square capable of hosting events; redeveloping the West Bay Esplanade and refurbishing its toilets; improving signs for visitors and integrating public art.