SOUTHEND Airport will plough ahead with its £35million expansion plans even though it still lacks final permission for an essential road closure, an inquiry heard.

Airport managing director Alastair Welch told a public inquiry owner the Stobart Group was in a race against time to complete the airport expansion before the 2012 London Olympics.

He was speaking at the first day of a hearing about an order to block off and divert Eastwoodbury Lane, to allow the runway to be extended by about 1,000ft.

Campaign group Stop Airport Extension Now objected to the order, granted by Southend Council as part of planning permission for the extension last year. The airport is replacing the lane with a new road linking Eastwoodbury Lane and Nestuda Way.

Mr Welch told the hearing the stopping-up order was “a prerequisite” to the runway extension for safety reasons, and said keeping the road as it was was not an option.

He said the new road was due to be completed in August, but would not open until the inspector’s decision on the stopping-up order was announced in September.

He said about £2.5million of the £6million link road budget had been spent so far, at the airport’s own risk.

Planning inspector Malcolm Rivett stressed he would not consider arguments against the runway extension itself.

The hearing continues.

THE first of two hearings discussing the expansion of Southend Airport is under way.

The court hearing is about whether part of the wall around St Laurence and All Saints Church, in Eastwoodbury Lane, Eastwood, should be removed and rebuilt elsewhere to allow for the extension of the runway.

It was called by George Pulman QC, Chelmsford’s ecclesiastical judge, after nine people wrote objecting to the plans, which will affect about 38m of late Victorian wall around the church.

Alastair Welch, managing director of the airport, told the hearing he believed noise from the airport and aircraft would be the same ot the church if the runway is extended or not.

Deputy church warden Martin Newman, 68, said the parochial church council recognised concerns of objectors, but did not oppose the application.

If permission to remove the section of wall is refused, it could scupper plans to expand the airport field, but the runway could still be extended. [extend the runway. Mr Welch has stated in court that the runway extension could not proceed without the demolition of the section of wall.]

A separate public inquiry, called by the Government in February into plans to divert part of Eastwoodbury Lane as part of the runway extension, will begin on Tuesday, May 10.

By STEPHEN HACKWELL

THE battle to stop Southend Airport’s expansion has been taken to Europe after a lengthy campaign by MP David Amess.

The European Parliament has said it will investigate the multi-million pound plans, which include extending the runway.

This could result in pressure being put on the Government to change its stance of support.

The decision is the culmination of a campaign by Tory Southend West MP Mr Amess, who sent a petition with more than 3,000 signatures to Brussels last year calling for and inquiry into the expansion’s environmental impacts.

THe news has delighted campaign group Stop Airport Extension Now.

Chairman Graham Whitehead said: “Local residents aren’t being represented by our councillors, so it is good to hear the European Parliament is to investigate the airport expansion.”

Airport bosses want to extend the runway by about 300m to allow bigger and more modern aircraft to use the site.

They say it will boost business for the area and build the airport’s reputation as a tourism link between London and Europe.

Protesters claim expansion would result in noisy flights and excessive pollution.

Mr Amess launched his appeal to the European Parliament after the Government decided to rubber-stamp the project, rather than hold a public inquiry in March 2010.

He hopes Brussels will put pressure on the Government to overturn the verdict and hold an inquiry.

The acceptance of his petition means the European Commission will now be asked to put together a report on the issue for the European Parliament’s Committee on Petitions.

Whatever its decision, the parliament has no power to directly overrule the Government or Southend Council.

Nigel Holdcroft, the Tory leader of the council, said he was confident Brussels would take no action.

He said: “We have already had a decision made by local councillors on what is a local issue.”

Neighbours receive conflicting letters from Stobart and council

By JOHN GEOGHEGAN
Political reporter

NEIGHBOURS living near Southend Airport’s runway are demanding to know whether their homes will be demolished or not.

Tracey Hanby, 46, and Sandy Berry, 66, live at two small holdings in Eastwoodbury Lane, opposite St Laurence’s Church.

The two houses were due to be knocked down to make way fro the runway extension, alongside four nearby cottages, but the airport owner Stobart has told them this may no longer be required.

Both expected to be forced out in January, but received letters in October from Stobart saying the airport no longer needed to buy their homes, but would be prepared [to] do so if they wished.

Since then, they have heard no more and say their lives have been turned upside down as they await the extension of the runway, which would end up about 100m from their homes.

To add to the uncertainty, they say Southend Council’s planners have told them their homes will go, as per the planning permission approved in April last year.

But council planners deny they said this, and added the airport was not obliged to demolish the homes, even though it has planning permission to do so.

Mrs Berry, who has lived in her home for 14 years, said: “The council is saying we are going to be demolished, but the airport says we are not.

“We have to read the Echo to find out what’s going on. We’ve lived here for nine years with the threat of being compulsorily purchased.

“I wouldn’t want to move from here. This is a beautiful place, it’s idyllic.”

Mrs Hanby added: “We need to know where we stand.”

The neighbours are also unhappy about the impact of ongoing work on the link road between Eastwoodbury Lane and Nestuda Way, with diggers operating close to their homes.

Mrs Hanby said: “We are, basically, living in a building site and not one person has had the decency to talk to us.”

She added she, husband Ricky, 48, and their son, would probably move if the runway extension went ahead.

The airport’s managing director, Alastair Welch, said: “While we have planning permission for the demolition of the two smallholdings, having spoken with the owners, who expressed their desire to stay, we have tried hard to avoid the need for demolition.

“There is a standing offer from the airport to purchase their properties should they wish to sell in future.”

Southend Council’s head of planning and transport, Andrew Meddle, said: “If the airport operators have decided they no longer need to demolish all the buildings they were given permission to demolish, that is a matter for them.

“We understand the Civil Aviation Authority has removed the requirement to demolish all the dwellings originally considered necessary.”

By John Geoghegan

SOUTHEND Airport bosses are trying to forcibly buy a cottage to make way for the runway extension.

They have issued a compulsory purchase order on the property off Eastwoodbury Lane that will have to be knocked down to make way for 300 metres of runway.

Under the plans, approved by Southend Council and the Government in April last year, six properties would have been demolished to allow for the expansion.

The four terraced homes which make up Eastwood- bury Cottages will go, along with two nearby smallholdings.

Three of the four homes are believed to have already been bought by the airport, but the owner of number 2, reported to be Jacob Greene, has failed to come to terms with owners Stobart.

The airport has now made the order on the property, which has been rented by Jamie Chambers, 22, and his mum Jan for the past 12 years.

Compulsory purchase orders allow certain bodies, like councils and airports, to buy land or property against the owner’s wishes.

Mr Chambers said: “We are on the council housing waiting list. I will be glad when it’s all over.”

The runway extension is still the subject of two judicial review applications, though High Court judges have already rejected both causing the applicants to pursue oral hearings.

Once all legal hurdles are cleared, airport bosses hope to start construction of the runway later this year to be ready for 2012.

Alastair Welch, the airport’s managing director, said: “We were granted permission to demolish six properties. We have been working to minimise the impact of the development and our aim is to reduce the number of properties we need to remove to four.

“The airport owns three of these four properties and has been in discussions for some time with the commercial landlord who owns the final property and which is now the subject of a compulsory purchase order.”

FINAL approval has been granted for a new lease at Southend Airport which will allow the runway extension while limiting night flights and noise.

In a series of three meetings, Southend councillors approved new lease terms, which will see night flight limits between 11pm and 6.30am, cut from 915 a month to 120.

Following meetings of the Tory cabinet and the cross-party economic and environmental scrutiny committee, the final full council meeting saw a vote where members approved the lease, by 39 votes to four.

All the opposition votes were cast by Lib Dem councillors – Alan Crystall (Leigh), Barry Godwin (Leigh), Ric Morgan (Prittlewell) and Peter Wexham (Leigh).

Two more Lib Dems, Jim Clinkscales (Blenheim Park) and Duncan Russell (Blenheim Park), abstained.

The Lib Dems want the council, as landowner, to tighten restrictions further and enforce a complete airport closure between 11pm and 6.30am, but this was rejected at the meeting.

On Monday, Lib Dem members were still unhappy about night flights, and the length of the 200-year lease granted to the airport. They said there had been a lack of consultation with residents over the whole airport expansion process.

Peter Wexham called for Tory leader Nigel Holdcroft to emulate the Prime Minister and implement a no-fly zone over Southend at night.

He said: “David Cameron made a lot of effort to put in a no-fly zone to help people in Libya. The council had a golden opportunity to put in a no-fly zone to help the people of Southend.

“But the leader has written it off and let people down. I’m very disappointed.”

Mr Holdcroft said council officers had been “bullish” in their negotiations to deliver a tough package of environmental controls, and a full-night closure airport would not have been workable.

He added: “We can consult until we are blue in the face. The public will never speak with one face on this.

“Consultation is all well and good, but we all know only a small group ever participate in the consultation.”

Council bosses said a 200-year lease would allow the airport security to get funding, which a shorter lease would not allow, but the council owning the land meant it could impose conditions on the airport.

DATES have been set for a three-day hearing to decide whether a church wall should make way for the runway extension.

As part of the airport’s plans, 38m of the Victorian wall around St Laurence and All Saints Church, in Eastwood, needs to be removed.

Anti-extension campaigners have praised the decision of chancellor George Pulman QC, Chelmsford’s ecclesiastical judge, to call a hearing.

Ir will be held at the church on May 3, 4 and 5. The decision to call the hearing was made after nine letters of objections were sent to Chelmsford Diocese, complaining about plans to remove and rebuild the wall.

As part of the agreement, a section of Eastwoodbury Lane running alongside the church would be diverted and the airport field would have a 3m-high security perimeter fence, behind a yew hedge.

The airport and objectors will take part in the hearing, which will be conducted in the same way as ordinary court proceedings.

If the wall is allowed to remain, it could force the airport to alter the runway extension plans.