Despite the protests of the not enormously economically savvy local afficionados, Manston is likely to remain closed. It is selling its equipment to Lydd apparently (Lydd is another whole can of worms - owned by the Sheik Fakeh al Athel - perhaps for another blog).
Local fury has turned on Mrs Anne Gloag. Famously not a very nice woman, with large Bette Davis eyes and a withered visage which sits oddly with her youthful blonde bob. She is 70-something, and like other determined business people (Rupert Murdoch springs to mind) shows no sign of letting up. Strange that they are both apparently Christians yet both so nasty - would they be Christians in the Mrs Thatcher (The Good Samaritan was only a good thing because he had MONEY) mould? So, I am not a fan of Mrs Gloag. Unfortunately, public opinion in this tiny province of the Empire, is now so polarised that anyone who is happy the airport is closed, is immediately assumed to be an adherent of hers. The idea of a nuanced position is not well-understood here.
Mrs G bought the airport for £1 last year and, as I suspected, bought it for its land bank. It is effectively the biggest brownfield site in Thanet. Unfortunately, many local people didn't understand this - they thought the Bus millionairess had bought it for some other reason - perhaps to invest even more money in it and turn it into Kent's answer to Gatwick. Oh, you think I'm being cruel to the simplicity of local people? I assure you that is fair comment - bear in mind that we have some of the lowest levels of educational qualification and skills in the county.
Mrs G has now closed the airport. She is going to put housing on it. I think that is pretty much inevitable. It would take about 20 years to return the land to agriculture, it could be used as a solar field perhaps in the mean time - but honestly, realistically, in this climate, turning it into housing is the answer. So my argument is, if there is to be housing there, let's make damn sure that it is decent, high quality housing, with a good portion of social housing, high ecological standards, plenty of trees to offset the carbon used in the construction, open spaces, facilities, planning gain! Of course, knowing TDC this is a bit of a pipe dream. This is a local council which doesn't seem to understand about planning gain.
There was considerable opposition to the housing idea from the Manstonistas - many of whom, to judge by their comments, must be UKIP supporters - comments on the lines of "we don't want sink estates" (as if - this will be expensive stuff - that's where the money is), "we don't want everyone being emptied out of London coming down here" "25 families from Brixton have already moved here " (Brixton is code for "black"). The little Englander is alive and well. I don't totally love the idea, I like the open spaces, the flat windswept ridge, I don't want to see it covered with houses - hence my longing for trees! But I recognise that there are economic realities. TDC could deny her planning permission, but she will take it higher and eventually be granted it by the Minister - so why bother? Get control of the situation now, impose conditions - make sure it will be an absolutely fabulous place to live.
Unfortunately, there is now a massive hare running that Mrs G is going to apply for "Garden city" status for her proposed development. Cue mass hysteria. And I would object to that, because (a) it will be harder to impose planning conditions (b) it won't be a garden city that Ebenezer Howard would recognise (c) there is talk of it extending to embrace the "Science Park" on the Pfizer site - in other words it would take in Cliffsend and swallow hectares of agricultural land along the A256 to Sandwich. For heaven's sake! Unfortunately, to support any housing is seen as support for the Garden City scheme - so I am anticipating some weeks of vituperation and irrationality. Deep sigh.
I am hoping the Garden City hare is just a strategy to make us all relieved an grateful when it just turns out to be 1200 houses on the airport site.
Local fury has turned on Mrs Anne Gloag. Famously not a very nice woman, with large Bette Davis eyes and a withered visage which sits oddly with her youthful blonde bob. She is 70-something, and like other determined business people (Rupert Murdoch springs to mind) shows no sign of letting up. Strange that they are both apparently Christians yet both so nasty - would they be Christians in the Mrs Thatcher (The Good Samaritan was only a good thing because he had MONEY) mould? So, I am not a fan of Mrs Gloag. Unfortunately, public opinion in this tiny province of the Empire, is now so polarised that anyone who is happy the airport is closed, is immediately assumed to be an adherent of hers. The idea of a nuanced position is not well-understood here.
Mrs G bought the airport for £1 last year and, as I suspected, bought it for its land bank. It is effectively the biggest brownfield site in Thanet. Unfortunately, many local people didn't understand this - they thought the Bus millionairess had bought it for some other reason - perhaps to invest even more money in it and turn it into Kent's answer to Gatwick. Oh, you think I'm being cruel to the simplicity of local people? I assure you that is fair comment - bear in mind that we have some of the lowest levels of educational qualification and skills in the county.
Mrs G has now closed the airport. She is going to put housing on it. I think that is pretty much inevitable. It would take about 20 years to return the land to agriculture, it could be used as a solar field perhaps in the mean time - but honestly, realistically, in this climate, turning it into housing is the answer. So my argument is, if there is to be housing there, let's make damn sure that it is decent, high quality housing, with a good portion of social housing, high ecological standards, plenty of trees to offset the carbon used in the construction, open spaces, facilities, planning gain! Of course, knowing TDC this is a bit of a pipe dream. This is a local council which doesn't seem to understand about planning gain.
There was considerable opposition to the housing idea from the Manstonistas - many of whom, to judge by their comments, must be UKIP supporters - comments on the lines of "we don't want sink estates" (as if - this will be expensive stuff - that's where the money is), "we don't want everyone being emptied out of London coming down here" "25 families from Brixton have already moved here " (Brixton is code for "black"). The little Englander is alive and well. I don't totally love the idea, I like the open spaces, the flat windswept ridge, I don't want to see it covered with houses - hence my longing for trees! But I recognise that there are economic realities. TDC could deny her planning permission, but she will take it higher and eventually be granted it by the Minister - so why bother? Get control of the situation now, impose conditions - make sure it will be an absolutely fabulous place to live.
Unfortunately, there is now a massive hare running that Mrs G is going to apply for "Garden city" status for her proposed development. Cue mass hysteria. And I would object to that, because (a) it will be harder to impose planning conditions (b) it won't be a garden city that Ebenezer Howard would recognise (c) there is talk of it extending to embrace the "Science Park" on the Pfizer site - in other words it would take in Cliffsend and swallow hectares of agricultural land along the A256 to Sandwich. For heaven's sake! Unfortunately, to support any housing is seen as support for the Garden City scheme - so I am anticipating some weeks of vituperation and irrationality. Deep sigh.
I am hoping the Garden City hare is just a strategy to make us all relieved an grateful when it just turns out to be 1200 houses on the airport site.
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