COMER Homes is facing a legal battle with builders dismissed from its flagship development on Portland.

Knight Build Ltd will take on Comer in the courtroom claiming around 40 tradesmen were wrongfully dismissed from its site at Castletown.

The company claims it has been locked out of the site since March 16 and not been allowed to take back thousands of pounds worth of construction equipment.

But Comer Homes disputes the facts and a date has now been arranged for Knight Build to come on site and take the items.

According to Knight Build there are 150,000 individual items belonging to the company still at the vast building site.

This includes hundreds of scaffolding tubes worth £400,000, office equipment, computers and diggers.

John Knight, of Essex-based Knight Build, said: "We can confirm that on March 16 we were wrongfully dismissed from this site.

"Our operatives and those of our sub-contractors were prevented from gaining access to the site.

"Since then we have been unable to remove our plant, office equipment and furniture from the site.

"We have commenced legal proceedings with a view to obtaining redress."

The dispute between the two companies centres on a pay disagreement with plasterers, labourers, glaziers and plumbers employed or sub-contracted by Knight Build.

The Royal Institute for Chartered Surveyors was called in to arbitrate but now Knight Build says the matter will be decided by a judge on April 20.

Mr Knight said: "We enjoyed our time in Weymouth and Portland and we are proud of the large number of locals that we managed to employ. We are obviously very sorry for the way our contract has ended and the loss of jobs that resulted."

The development on Portland, named Ocean Views, will see 500 luxury apartments built overlooking the 2012 Olympic sailing site.

As a result of the dispute Comer Homes terminated the contract of Knight Build at three of its building sites - Portland, Bushey and Harrow.

A spokesman for Comer said: "We have engaged our solicitors with a view to finding a resolution.

"It is all subject to legal proceedings at the moment so I am limited in what I can say. Suffice to say we want Ocean View to be completed on budget and on time.

"Knight Build were told they could get their equipment last week and a new date has now been arranged."