Hangar homes near Glasgow - or T-hangars?

[xrayalpha]

Hi all,

We have a few acres of ground that might be useful for building houses on. Possibly in nice 1/2 acre plots.

There would be a limit of four or five house, due to various council requirement for (expensive) adoptable standard roads. One big benefit to Strathaven Airfield would be a proper tarmac road as a result!

There would also be a need to be something, shall we say, "out-of-the-ordinary" to give an application a chance of success. This is not normally where they would give permission for more houses.

So one thought was a mini-airpark, with hangar homes.

Not even sure how it would all work legally - after all there are perfectly flyable light aircraft available for just a few thousand pounds that one could stick in the back of one's (double garage) hangar and never fly.

Has anyone any experience of how one would do this legally: i.e. giving people rights of use of the airfield, obligation to keep an aircraft, etc. What would happen if someone lost their medical? Or would they even have to be licensed? Is there even a single airpark in the UK that is up and running?

There must be some things like this for retirement homes, where you own but can only sell to other retired people (or in this case aircraft owner/pilot)

For aesthetics, looking at something from people like hebhomes. Price for a serviced plot with power and water about £130k.

Advice and thoughts very welcome - even if by private message.

The one big question might be: why would one want a hangar home rather than just have a house somewhere else and an aircraft at an airfield?

ps. Another possibility would be the construction of some T-hangars. Strathaven is really only suitable for Rotax 912 powered LAA and microlight types. And we don't have much capital left to invest in it! So has anyone any examples of where people have built their own T-hangars on a - say - 15 year ground rent? I know Cumbernauld has a few hangers built this way. Wondered if there would be demand for, say, a minimum of six spaces, to make the T concept viable?

[piperboy84]

Hey Colin, my opinion (being worth what you pay for it) is I don’t think the air park idea would work even if allowed. I suspect the planners initial response to your enquiry about the potential for developing a residential air-park would be for them to confirm that you are aware that you’re strip is located in South Lanarkshire and not Southern Arizona. And even If they did give you the go ahead and you sold the house/hangars initially to pilots I could see a few years down the road after a few divorces, sales and hobby changes those houses being owned and operated by one-man-band tradesmen like plumbers, painters etc. with the hangar relieving their need to rent a separate commercial unit in a business park. Which may not be a problem for you but that was not your intent. You would also need to upgrade the runway to attract the type of guy that is going to spend the kind of money your talking about on a flying related residence.

The T hangar idea has a lot of merit with the big airports like EDI, ADN & GLA setting up pricing schedules to prevent GA and the smaller fields like Perth & Dundee having no availability. I have heard there are several folks who have bought new aircraft but can’t take delivery because they can’t find a home for them anywhere in Scotland, I've had several enquiries from people desperately wanting hangarage and even have a refugee in the hangar right now due to lack of space elsewhere. But again, and I’m sure you’ve heard this ad nauseam, you’ll have to fix the runway to attract that business and expand the types of aircraft using it from microlights to all sub 250hp singles.

My personal experience with building a suitable strip was surprising easy. Basically securing the services of a couple of highly skilled former Mcalpine Fusiliers on a weekly labor rate, put them on a laser level equipped D9 and a pipe laying/backfilling rental machine and Sir Bob’s boys will knock you out a dead flat, dry year-round top of the line strip in 2 or 3 weeks at a labor and material cost of about £25K. Then you can sell the **** out of the T Hangars/plots, existing or expanded current hangars and receive much more day traffic that normally wouldn’t visit.

Just my tuppence with the following old saying in mind: Opinions are like arseholes, everyone has one!

[Romeo Tango]

You could charge tenants/owners for a certain amount of fuel and/or landings per month whether they use it/them or not thus providing an incentive to have an aeroplane .... and income for you.

[Crash one]

What about renting Chalet + hangar + free landings to the holiday trade?
Even if the renters don't have an aircraft they could do resident flying courses on site?
The local council might object to discrimination over who is allowed to buy, then you might find pikeys moving in and stuffing it all up.
Just another asshole opinion.

[Flyingmac]

I think every airfield should do it.

[md 600 driver]

Flyingmac
You hit the nail on the head lots of airfields have a abunce of space for runway side residential /hangar building it would provide funds for the airfield owners And also provide much need Homes if there was a project like this in Yorkshire I would be very interested. Not too sure about missus but could go there on my own lol

[Cpt_Pugwash]

I seem to recall this concept being tried at Henstridge (http://www.airports-worldwide.com/uk/uk_henstridge.html), but ultimately was unsuccessful due to planning issues.

"During this period Keith Pierson, the then land-owner, fought for planning permission to establish an 'Airpark' at the airfield. After a long battle this fell through but, undismayed, he refurbished the surviving runway 07/25 and set up an airfield office/Ops/Clubhouse to the South of the runway from which operations are now conducted."

[CloudHound]

Hangar homes at Lee-on-Solent seem likely to go ahead as the Local Authority support the idea. Funnily enough it's the airport manager who appears not to favour the idea.

I really do think the holiday home/let solution in scenic areas would work. I'd be a customer.

[xrayalpha]

Hi all,

Thanks for the positive words so far.

PB84: we must talk about runway levelling next time you are in. My tuppence worth is that a main drain alongside the main runway with 1m deep and 1m wide rough stone infill (we are in Lanarkshire, as was pointed out!) would be 550 m2 of stone. At 2.2 per m2, that would be around 1200t of stone and at 12 quid a tonne delivered that would be c15k just for stone.

If we could do it all for 25k as suggested, the airfield is on the way to having that cash in its funds.

(I have, in the past, said to people who have quoted a low price: let's do it and I will give you that price plus 20% as a fixed price contract. I never heard back from them!)

I will get in touch with folk at Lee-on-Solent. Any contact details?

[piperboy84]

A lot of the cost is going to be in the backfill but the drain your describing is overkill, a 4 inch perforated pipe with pea gravel backfill into a 12" wide herring bone pattern diagonally crossing strip to a mains running the length of one side at a depth of a few feet is all i done, it works fine. Again the money is in the pea gravel the pipe is cheap.

[Floppy Link]

Colin,
This guy is the one behind the Lee on Solent plan I think…
Home (http://www.hangarhomes.co.uk)
Cheers