A question mark has been placed over council plans to give properties on Redcar seafront a ‘Balamory’ style paint job.

Councillor Kendra Evans told a meeting she had doubts about how long the planned new multi-colour finish would last due to the proximity to the sea and suggested it could soon start “crumbling and falling off”.

Redcar and Cleveland Council leader Alec Brown revealed in June last year details of the revamp for buildings in the town’s Newcomen Terrace, which also includes external improvements such as guttering, and said it would be funded from the £25m Redcar Town Deal.

The council has been in discussions with the owners of the properties and could set about £300,000 aside for the work.

Balamory is a BBC children’s television programme which used highly painted harbourside homes in Tobermory, in the Isle of Mull, Scotland, where it was shot, as its backdrop.

Speaking at a council meeting, Cllr Evans, the member for St Germain’s ward, said: “What is the guarantee we can keep up this wonderful Balamory-style paintwork for the next 10,15 or 20 years?”

Councillor Lynn Pallister, the council’s cabinet member for growth and enterprise, said long lasting materials would be looked at.

She said: “It is going to look fantastic.

“We can only hope it will be like that in ten years, but maybe we will have to do another paint job then, I don’t know.”

She said the council was waiting for better weather for the work, but it could start by April.

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Cllr Evans also asked Cllr Pallister whether there were any further regeneration projects planned for the far eastern end of Redcar High Street.

One of several schemes in the offing in Redcar under the Town Deal involves the creation of a family-focused entertainment venue in the High Street including the likes of tenpin bowling, mini golf, laser tag and climbing walls, while the new building will also contain a ‘cultural hub’ to house the town’s library.

A facelift is also planned for the pedestrianised area with improvements including new street furniture, more landscaping with plants and trees, and improved lighting.

Cllr Pallister said it was a valid question as there were “closed shops everywhere”.

She said the town centre was in a similar situation to other town centres and it was hoped to  “kick start” retail investment in the High Street, but this would need involvement from the private sector.