By Chris van Gass

A special sitting of the Cape Town city council yesterday approved the final building plans for the city's 2010 World Cup soccer stadium in Green Point, passing yet another mark in the regulatory process towards the completion of the R2,85bn stadium.

With tight deadlines facing the city, construction is already five weeks ahead of schedule, but the city is still being haunted by a legal challenge from activist group, the Cape Environmental Protection Agency (Cepa).

The challenge seeks to review the legality of the various provincial and council decisions taken in the lead-up to secure the new stadium site on the Green Point Common.

The hearing was "indefinitely postponed" after it was found the scale and complexity of the case and the work, which had to be done before it could be heard, meant that lawyers would not be ready on August 13.

Mayor Helen Zille said yesterday that the council would proceed with the court case "in a thorough manner" and it was confident that it had answered for all Cepa's challenges .

Zille said now that wind tunnel and noise tests had been completed and comments from the public who had inspected the plans had been submitted, "the contractors are ready to move on to building the main structure".

Up to now, the foundations had been constructed on the basis of two provisional building plans authorised by the council.

"The city followed this route to ensure it remained legally compliant as the construction progressed and we have stayed within these authorisations at all times," she said.

Yesterday's approval means the stadium structure will soon rise above ground level.

She also said the three final tenders for the long-term operator of the stadium after 2010 were being assessed.

The operator would have to run the stadium in a sustainable way and produce income to maintain the sport, recreation, park and public walkway precinct proposed for the reconfigured Common. She said because of tight deadlines "we cannot afford any delay".