“This is a sheer business decision,” he said. “They’re charging me rates for the land.”

Mr Lionetti said it was obvious he was being singled out in personal attacks by one councillor in particular, who he said voted against all development in the city.

A former City councillor himself, Mr Lionetti was in frequent conflict during his tenure.

Several fellow councillors accused him of serving his own interests.

“What are these councillors doing for the town?” he said.

“I have invested in Albany. Of course I have got vested interests.

“I am interested in what happens to the future of my children and their families.

“What are some of these councillors doing?”

Mr Lionetti said it was obvious he had been negatively targeted because of his business success.

His critics should be helping to advance Albany, he said.

Mr Lionetti said he was the only one on Council who had voted against its investment in the failed US firm, Lehman Brothers, which eventually lost the City about $6 million.

“We should have stayed with the major banks,” he said.

“Nobody is investing in Albany because of Council’s attitude.

“The circus is not doing anything for the city.”

Mr Lionetti said plans for the development had been all but completed, with only engineering details to be sorted.

He expected to lose about $100,000 invested so far in the project.

“I’m going to Busselton to look at a commercial proposition,” he said.

Mr Lionetti said the owners of Snowball’s Auctions had been inconvenienced by having to move to lower York Street in preparation for the changes that would have taken place.

The development site comprises 12 different titles, which were to have been amalgamated into one lot, with a total size of 9963 square metres.

Over two stages, the existing department store building (old Harris Scarfe) would have been redeveloped with new shop fronts and a canopy over the footpath on Peels Place.

The existing Home Hardware building would then be demolished, along with the building which housed Snowball’s Auctions, and a new three-storey commercial/retail building was to be built facing Stirling Terrace.

There would have been pedestrian access from Stirling Terrace to Peels Place.

Although his proposed development falls only 13 bays short, Mr Lionetti said he would not change plans that would compromise its integrity and lose future, rentable floorspace.

“Of course I could put it (the parking bays) in, but at what cost?” he said.

“I would lose floorspace.

“With the high rates being charged by the City, I need to get as much from the development as I can.

“How can I find a tenant when we are going to be charged three lots of nine per cent rises in rates.”

Albany Mayor Milton Evans said he was disappointed Mr Lionetti had decided to pull out of the development.

He said he had expected a development application to come before Council after the City provided options for Mr Lionetti to explore and the development to progress.

“That hasn’t officially been told to me.

“I am disappointed to hear that. I thought it would have been a wonderful addition to Albany’s heritage, especially the way it was designed.

Mr Evans said the City held a meeting with Mr Lionetti and his architect outlining a “very clear option” to satisfy the parking requirements.

He said there was a policy in place that allowed parking 50 metres away from the development where land could be used to satisfy the City’s requirements.

“He was given a very clear option on how to get around it.

“I was waiting for that development application to come forward on the basis of that.

“That was my clear understanding. That option was for him to explore and come back to us with an amended application.

“It’s been a little bit of time.

“What’s transpired in the meantime, to use pulling out as a shot at Council at the time of pre-election, speaks for itself.

“There were very clear options to him. I was expecting this proposal to come forward given the options they had before them.”