STONEHENGE PLAN FINALLY APPROVED -- WE HOPE!

Since I am the co-author of Oxford University Press "Digging for the Past" book titled Stonehenge (with Cambridge Don Caroline Malone) I am delighted to note the following. Just hope this is a final approval!

In the latest chapter in the 20 year-long saga surrounding the English Heritage-backed project, Wiltshire County Council approved the £20 million proposals for the Airman's Corner site 2.5km west of Stonehenge. Plans for the closure of the A344 adjacent to the stones will now be submitted for approval.

Following a lengthy consultation and extensive technical assessments, the Prime Minister announced on 13 May last year that Airman's Corner would be the location for new Stonehenge visitor facilities. Together with proposals for the closure of the A344, the scheme will enhance the monument's setting by removing the existing visitor facilities (including car parking) and improving the visitor experience with new exhibition and education facilities. A fully accessible transit system will run from the new visitor centre to a drop-off near the Stones.

Airman's Corner is about 1.5 miles (2.5km) west from Stonehenge, on the junction of the A344 and A360. It is at the edge of the World Heritage Site and is easily accessible by road. The land is currently used for farming, with very few residents living close to the site.

Sources: Andover Advertiser, The Architects' Journal (21 January 2010)
http://tinyurl.com/yct63ay
http://tinyurl.com/yhr62gp
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