A dying man’s wishes for an open-air theatre are being put “in jeopardy” by conditions being imposed by council officers.

The Brighton Open Air Theatre (Boat) in Dyke Road Park is set to be given the go ahead by the council’s planning committee tomorrow.

The theatre was the dream of writer and producer Adrian Bunting, who died of cancer aged 47 in May last year.

But those behind the scheme say conditions imposed by council officers will make the plans “unviable”.

Steve Turner, of Boat, said demanding that shows finished at 9.30pm and limiting the venue to three performances a week would restrict the kind of performances they could put on.

He also said that a clause to pay £26,000 for cycling and pedestrian improvements around the park would be too much for a small, fledgling charity to pay.

He said: “These difficult conditions could put the whole thing in jeopardy.

“Nobody is making money from this. This is a dying man’s wish and something he had tried to do for many, many years.

“10pm is a normal finish time for something like this. For putting on something like Shakespeare we need a certain level of light for the end of the play and half an hour makes a huge difference. We cannot be restricted to just three nights a week. Some companies will need to run five or six nights a week.

“It is a great prospect and something we need to have in this city but we are coming up against some problems.”

Mr Turner said he wanted to ask councillors to loosen some restrictions at tomorrow’s meeting but had been told the charity is not entitled to speak as no objectors had requested to talk.

The theatre would be funded by £20,000 left in Mr Bunting’s will and another £30,000 the charity has raised.

They propose digging up a disused bowling green to create an auditorium capable of hosting 425 spectators.

Twelve residents support the proposal and two object.

If the planning conditions can be resolved, building could begin early next year in time for the Brighton Festival in May.