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Looking to the Future
 The Common and Commerce
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Looking to the Future
The Common and Commerce
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Most people think of Greenham Common today as a former cruise missile base or perhaps as an area of restored heathland.
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But the transformation from military base to public open space has only been made possible by a remarkable partnership between West Berkshire Council and the Greenham Common Trust.
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On 11 September 1992, the United States Air Force handed the military command of the Greenham Common airbase back to the Royal Air Force after five decades of operations there. Almost immediately the speculation began about future uses for the 1,200-acre site. The suggestions ranged from the re-establishment of the whole area as common land to the creation of an additional airport for London. Meanwhile, the facilities built by the USAF at a cost of $250 million lay idle, their contents stripped out.
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The announcement by the Secretary of State for Defence on 9 February 1993 that the Greenham Common airbase was surplus to requirements gave Newbury District Council (later to become West Berkshire Council) the impetus it needed to suggest a range of possible uses for the airbase. The site was divided for planning purposes into six areas - A to F - each with its own special character. In this Theme we consider Area E, the former administrative, technical and residential part of the airbase.
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Area E, RAF Greenham Common |
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Unlike the rest of the base, with its wide-open spaces, this area contained large numbers of buildings, including massive aircraft hangars, barrack blocks, offices and workshops. Clearly, there were opportunities for developing this area for residential or business purposes. In a consultation document, Newbury District Council suggested a range of possible uses: a new village of one thousand homes, small scale industrial units, a wood recycling factory, warehousing and even a commercial airfield.
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Local businessman Sir Peter Michael had already discussed the possibility of a Trust taking over the 150-acre site by May 1994. In the meantime the MoD introduced a number of companies into the redundant buildings.
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Car storage, Greenham Common |
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Greenham Common Trust, inside spread |
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The vacant buildings soon proved to be attractive to local companies, with a range of businesses taking short-term leases. During 1995 and 1996, the Council developed its proposals to create an Enterprise Centre on Area E.
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On 24 March 1997, the purchase of the airbase for £7 million by the newly formed Greenham Common Trust was completed. The Trust was a partnership of local authority and business representatives, and borrowed the money to purchase the site from the MoD on commercial terms. The way was now open for the development of a business zone, named New Greenham Park.
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Estate agent's particulars, Greenham airbase |
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The site proved popular with businesses and in March 1999 the Trust completed the £2.5 million Enterprise Centre, helped by a grant from European Union KONVER funding, which provides economic assistance to regions which had lost defence-related employment.
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The Centre provides accommodation for small workshops and offices, whilst the Newbury Enterprise Hub was set up as a joint venture with the South East England Development Agency. New Greenham Park continues to develop: new roundabouts on the A339 Newbury to Basingstoke Road were built in 2000 to improve access to the site and by 2002, over 150 businesses employing around one thousand people were based there.
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Park News Autumn 2002, front cover |
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In the autumn of 2002 a 'master plan' for the next fifteen years was unveiled, aimed at helping small and medium sized businesses flourish. The plan also included a regional distribution centre for the supermarket chain Sainsbury's on the site of the former aircraft hangars. The scale of this proposal resulted in considerable opposition from local people, a reminder that, at Greenham, controversy is never far away.
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The success of New Greenham Park has meant that the Greenham Common Trust has been able to support local charities including church, school and healthcare groups, as well as making major grants to assist with the restoration of Greenham and Crookham Commons.
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Contributions to restoring the common |
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Thanks to the unique partnership between the Trust and West Berkshire Council, commons and commerce exist happily together, creating a sense of place that is uniquely Greenham.
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