A BISPHAM man whose allotment was bulldozed and property destroyed by Blackpool Borough Council was the victim of a personal vendetta, a court was told.

Ian Brown, of Armadale Road, had refused to give up his tenancy on the Leys Farm allotment which he rented from the council, after he was served a notice to quit in February 1998. The council wanted to re-take possession of the site after receiving a £5 million offer -- which was later retracted -- from Bellway Homes to build a luxury housing estate there. The allotments were bulldozed amid a storm of protest in May 1999.

Mr Brown, an ex-employee of the council, was claiming damages for the destruction of his crops and property, including wooden pallets, a hand-made timber bench and plants.

The council brought a counterclaim against Mr Brown for £680 for the cost of removing his property from the allotment.

Former council leader Coun Ivan Taylor, chief executive Graham Essex-Crosby and director of legal and democratic services David Eccles were summoned as witnesses for the council but District Judge Bryce ruled that there was no reason for them to give evidence.

Andrew Baxter, a layman acting for Mr Brown, said his allotment had been destroyed first and that the operation became personal when Mr Brown was branded a trouble-maker.

The court heard evidence from former councillor Beverley Higham that Mr Brown's plot was "completely ploughed up" and in a worse state than the rest. "I can't see why that amount of devastation on one particular plot was necessary and I can't understand why it was different from the others," she said.

Mr Baxter argued that the council had acted unreasonably in destroying Mr Brown's property. He said: "He kept his allotment under cultivation and perhaps added value to it. He merely wrote some letters and entered in to a series of correspondence with the council."

But Bruce Henry, defending, said Mr Brown had received a valid notice to quit under the terms of his tenancy agreement and was given sufficient time to vacate the site.

Duncan Broadbent, a council parks officer involved in the management of the site, told the court that Mr Brown was not singled out for special treatment and his pitch had not been destroyed first purposely. "It was just a coincidence, it was certainly not targeting Mr Brown," he said.

Mr Henry said the council sent a letter to Mr Brown in March 1999 telling him any items on the plot after expiry of the tenancy would be regarded as abandoned and that there had been sufficient warnings to indicate that the council had re-taken possession of the site, including the erection of signs and new locks on gates.

Judge Bryce reserved his judgment and said that he would give his decision in writing at a later date.