Representation by Katharine Walters
- Date submitted
- 4 October 2018
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
I am writing a letter regarding the consultation process for Manston Airport.
I moved to Ramsgate recently into an apartment close to Ellington Park. I have moved from London because I love the area, speaking of the natural environment (birds, other wildlife, climate), and also the growth and development of Ramsgate town. I am only 33 and I have been looking forward to spending a long time in this area, seeing it grow. I live directly under the flight path (I believe) on Codrington Road. From my house I see nature all around me (murmurings of starlings over Ellington Park, Kingfishers at the harbour). Ramsgate has it's problems as a town as so many do on the coast, but the natural habitat is a major asset and a draw I believe for people moving into the area and new investment. I would be saddened to see any of the natural environment in Ramsgate to be disturbed by what you are proposing.
I am one of many young people choosing to leave London and settle in Thanet for a more peaceful way of life, generally speaking. I have not seen enough specifics about the implications of this airport development on my property.
The detail is not very forthcoming from Riveroak's side in terms of what the impact might be. Also, I have to note, for a company who associate with American airports and talk a good game in terms of background, I was dismayed to see quite a lot of grammatical and spelling errors in the proposals from Riveroak. I don't believe any serious operation would let this happen. Imagine British Airways producing a piece of text which was ill-written.
The questions I have which I raised to Riveroak and Thanet Council without any response apart from a brief acknowledgement of my email were as follows.
How many flights are being proposed to take place during the day?
How many flights are being proposed to take place during the night time hours?
What size of aircraft will be flying?
What compensation might you propose in terms of sound-proofing for Ramsgate and Herne Bay should these flights take place? Triple glazing etc. Locals are telling me that they are accustomed to being woken up hourly by night flights given the closeness of the aircraft’s flying motion. A cargo aircraft would presumably be even louder?
What will you do for Ramsgate town to mitigate the effects of these flights on local regeneration, tourism growth. This question is directed towards TDF. I will add that Margate has receive a lot of money from TDF and is thriving well. It is Ramsgate’s turn to have some investment in the area and I’d like know in detail what TDF/Cllr [Redacted] are proposing for my area. We all pay the same Council tax.
Please can you send me your environmental findings report, and credentials for who carried out this investigation. I’d like to know exactly what emissions will be coming into my airspace and other health concerns (not including sleep deprivation). I’d like to know environmental impacts too in terms of the natural world/global warming.
What is the exact flight path of your proposed flights. Please share a map so that I can see how my street and property is affected.
What is your response to loss of property value to Ramsgate and especially the flight path area, as a result of your proposals?
Had I seen the consultation meeting advertised or been given enough time to attend from the date of the Council’s vote, I would have attended the session and asked for this information in person. Therefore, I will look forward to your response with alacrity
In summary I object to the airport plans wholeheartedly. I'm sure you have far more informed commentators detailing the specific reasons why this is a damaging environmental proposal. I want to add that my reason for objection is the ill-written website, lack of response from Riveroak and a consultation process in February which was minimally advertised presumably in order to reduce objection. It gives me lack of faith in the ability of this operation to carry out a sound business plan and draw success into the area. I want to point out recent failings such as Pleasurama and the Port enterprise in Ramsgate alone, the latter costing millions annually. We cannot afford to allow anything other than the best quality companies to pursue a project like this in Thanet, especially with TDC cutting spending by millions annually.
Yours Faithfully, Katharine Walters