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Aerodrome campaigners 'devastated' by court ruling

St Albans: Fight the Freight Four men and three women outside the stone-built Royal Courts of Justice in the Strand, London. They are carrying bags and rucksacks and standing in a line with the entrance to the court in the background. One is wearing a red jacket and trousers.St Albans: Fight the Freight
Campaigners went to the Royal Courts of Justice for the hearing in June

Campaigners said they were "devastated" and "disheartened" by a ruling which could mark the end of their efforts to save a historic aerodrome.

St Albans: Fight the Freight group had appealed against a decision there could be no judicial review into the sale of Radlett Aerodrome in Hertfordshire.

A judge has now rejected the appeal, clearing the way for the site to become a rail freight terminal.

The group said it would now concentrate on monitoring the terminal as it was developed.

The government gave permission for the property development firm Segro to build a freight terminal on 1,000 acres of land at the old aerodrome in 2014.

While most of the site previously belonged to private owners and was sold by them, 300 acres were owned and sold by the council in a £34m deal.

Campaigners said the council had bought the land in 1984 for £1 so it would be kept as "open space".

Helioslough An artist's impression of a large grey warehouse building with two stories of windows and an undulating roof. A covered parking area is adjacent. There is grass in the foreground.Helioslough
Segro said it wanted to "create 335,000 sq m of logistics space with a strategic rail freight interchange"

The group sought a judicial review into the council's sale of their part of the site, but Mrs Justice Lieven refused permission for a review in June.

She said the council might have intended the land to be used as open space, but it had actually been a farm, which did not count as open space.

Campaigners sought permission to appeal that ruling, but this has now been refused by Lord Justice Lewison, who decided the application was made too late and did not have any reasonable prospects of success.

Helioslough Artist's impression of an aerial shot of the site, showing five blocks of warehouses with undulating roofs, with a small lake to the right. A development of small industrial units is visible to the left, separated from the warehouses by a line of trees.Helioslough
Segro said the park would be "enveloped in 250 hectares of managed woodland, conservation grazing and public country park"

The group said: "We are devastated by this result, as we truly believed in the justice and necessity of our cause. This loss is painful, but it also reminds us of the long road ahead and the challenges we must confront."

The group added that it would now "keep up pressure on Segro to adhere to the planning permissions and conditions that have been set out as they develop the site".

A spokesperson for Hertfordshire County Council said: "The decision taken by the Judge to dismiss the application for an appeal is welcome and we will now continue to focus our attention to working with the local district council to maximise the economic benefits that the sale will bring."

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