Stone Hill Park alter plans to include use of part of the runway for heritage use

In a surprising turn of events today, Stone Hill Park have announced a radical change to their plans for the airport site.

Whereas they have always said that they were not interested in providing aviation they have now revised their plans to enable a part of the runway to be used.

In their release, they state:

A new home for Manston’s two museums – subject to their agreement – to a new ‘Spitfire Quarter’ located next to a retained 1,199 metre section of the former runway dedicated to vintage and heritage flights.

We obviously continue to campaign, as we have always done, to safeguard the important asset of the runway and to see the return of a viable airport at Manston. It remains to be seen whether these changes will be in any way enough to bridge the divide between those that support the housing development and those like us who wish to see the continuation of aviation at Manston.

Other investment plans involving a DCO or CPO will, of course, still be able to proceed and, if successful, would supersede these plans. With things really hotting up, time is of the essence and any potential investor now needs to get something definitive on the table if they want to play a part in the future of the airport. Clearly there could now be opportunities now to discuss with the current owners, or consider plans that might not have been previously possible or viable.

You can see the announcement that initially was released today in the Isle of Thanet News here https://theisleofthanetnews.com/stone-hill-parks-latest-plan-for-the-manston-airport-site-to-include-heritage-aviation/

Stone Hill Park later officially released more details on their site: http://www.stonehillpark.co.uk/heritage-forms-the-heart-of-enhanced-masterplan-for-manston

You can see the revised plans for yourself here at Stone Hill Park’s public consultation events:

* Monday, 20 November 2017 3.00pm – 8.00pm
Holiday Inn Express Minster Tothill Street, Minster CT12 4AU

* Tuesday, 21 November 2017 3.00pm – 8.00pm
Pegwell Bay Hotel, 81 Pegwell Rd, Ramsgate, CT11 0NJ