New bid to save derelict Plymouth Airport – by having it listed
AN application to list Plymouth Airport has been submitted to Historic England, with the aim of protecting it from being built on.
In recent months, the thorny issue of what could be done with the 113acre site has been raised by both the Labour-led city council and its Conservative opposition group.
In February, Plymouth City Council said it was giving lease holder Sutton Harbour Group (SHG) “one last chance” before starting legal action which could see it reclaim the land.
The council claimed that Plymouth City Airport Ltd (PCAL) – a company owned wholly by SHG – was in breach of lease covenants. It said SHG had failed to reassure the council it would comply with its lease for the former Plymouth City Airport site, and has served SHG with a formal legal notice.
SHG denied it had breached the lease and said it plans to build houses on the site. Cllr Andy Lugger, leader of the council’s Conservative group, said he was “incredulous” at
SHG’s plan, arguing it was “a land grab through the back door with no meaningful aviation on the site.”
The council recently protected the former airport from development for another five years via the Plymouth and South West Devon Joint Local Plan. This month, a study by independent aviation consultants at Berkshire-based EA Maven said the airport has potential to serve millions of passengers and provide a huge economic boost to the city if reopened for flights, with consultants saying: “It would be a shame to lose the site.”
However, one individual has made an application to Historic England, tasked with protecting and championing buildings sites of national importance – for the site to be listed, which could alter its future.
As an example, shortly after it was suggested the Civic Centre in Plymouth be torn down in 2007, it was given listed status and thus the bulldozers were held off. It is now at the centre of major new plans.