RESIDENTS came face to face with developers over controversial plans to close a footpath.

There were angry exchanges between theresidents and representatives of a property firm owned by footballer Garry Flitcroft at a public meeting last night.

And by the end of the discussions, both sides were far from reaching a compromise.

David Flitcroft, who runs the firm with his sister Kelly and father John, was clearly taken aback by last night's often heated discussion.

His company will now spend the next two weeks trying to thrash out a plan for the footpath. But he admitted he had no idea which way the firm's decision would go.

The row centres around a footpath which acts as a short cut through an estate in Bromley Cross.

It was closed temporarily while G and J Properties -- set up by Blackburn Rovers star Garry Flitcroft -- renovated flats at the end of an alley called Thomas Court.

The firm has since applied to Bolton Council for permanent closure, claiming it attracts yobs and is dangerous to walk through. But some residents are keen to keep it open because it is a short-cut.

Mr David Flitcroft told the meeting at Cornerstone Baptist Church that there were three options: to close the footpath completely, shut it during the night or keep it open.

He said he had many letters of support from residents of Lower House Walk -- those most affected by the alley closure -- for the plan to close it.

And he told the residents that it had always been his intention to open it during the day from 9am to 3pm. He added: "For every bad letter we have received there have been those in support and we draw strength from that."

But resident Ellen Walker, aged 58, said: "It has been a public footpath ever since I have lived here and it's a short cut for older people. I can't see the argument for closing it because you can get mugged anywhere, even walking down the road."

However Gareth Jenkins, aged 22, said "Kids have used that ginel for years. There has been trouble with drugs and drink. Culture has changed and the ginel has to be closed."

Mr Flitcroft rejected a proposal put forward at the meeting by 61-year-old John Kernick to keep it open for six months and then reassess its impact.

He said: "We want to stop any potential trouble before something happens and not after the event."

Following the meeting he was approached one-to-one by supporters of his closure plan who said they did not want to be identified in front of the crowd of more than 40 residents.

During the meeting, Mr Flitcroft's father, John, said: "We have turned the area around and we don't want it to revert back to its previous state."

The alley will open on August 10 but the closure plan will be put before councillors before then.

Cllr Norman Critchley, who attended the meeting and who, last September, backed a call for troublesome ginels to be tackled, said the alley had to remain open.

"There is a problem with youths in the area and its up to the local authority to overcome it," he said.