the area of Honiley Airfield amounting to some 200 acres has been identified by council officers as a potential site for employment development but not referred to in the proposed local plan.
There is already some 59 businesses located in a small part of the eastern area. Location and access is good for substantial expansion.
Recently a planning application was passed to benefit for the storage of vehicles for Jaguar Landrover for a period of four years only on a small area.
Despite hat was said at a meeting of Councillors and officers of the Council, the present occupiers of the site, Prodrive, as lessees and owners of the airfield, it was formally stated in the planning application that Prodrive are downsiing its operations at Honiley with the view of moving out of the area.
Although realizing the influence of the LEP is towards the Gateway project, it is believed that Honiley Airfield substantially offers itself as a far superior site for employment by location, existing infrastructure, access, etc., including it not suffering the gross toxic contamination of the Gateway site. housing for employees can be found within a small area including hatton green which is only some 3 miles away on the less busy stretches of the a4177. The development of the site will impose a far lesser burden on the public purse than Gateway and increase the sustainability of Warwick District noticeably.
the whole of the airfield is within wdc.
it is understood that wdc has made no approach to the owners of honiley airfield in its search for employment land and argument cannot be made against 'why not'.