A PROJECT to build a river cruise terminal in the shadow of Chepstow Castle has been given more time to get started.

Mr Peter Evans, of Chepstow-based Thomas Evans, was given permission for the scheme by Monmouthshire Council but was unable to get it started within the five-year life of the go-ahead.

The project has now been given an extra five years to begin, Chepstow town councillors were told.

The scheme was originally approved in 2007 but was hit by the economic downturn which affected the funding.

The extension to the planning permission was requested to enable a "relatively complex" set of requirements before the development can ahead.

No changes are being made to the design of the terminal which comprises a building in the castle car park with a decking area and a gangway down to the river.

The terminal has been designed by award-winning Chepstow-based architects Hall and Bednarczyk but has drawn criticism from nearby residents and the Forest of Dean Council.

One objector who lives in Elmdale opposite the proposed terminal wrote: "I cannot understand how a responsible Planning Authority could even consider such a Planning Application for development within what is a sensitive historical site which is part of our heritage."

The Forest of Dean Council remains concerned about the possible impact of the terminal on views of the castle and the old Wye Bridge from the English side of the river.