Welcome to Walker Logistics’ consultation website for our proposed new logistics warehouse and aircraft museum, the ‘Dakota building’.
In Spring 2022 we launched this website as part of Walker Logistics’ public consultation. After considering all the feedback we then submitted a Reserved Matters planning application, reference 22/00897/RESMAJ. Since then we have worked with West Berkshire Council’s officers to address all issues to their satisfaction. The application is due to be decided in February 2023.
Background: Outline permission was granted in April 2021, application number 19/02979/OUTMAJ. It established the principle of erecting a new logistics warehouse building for occupation by Walker Logistics (Use Class B8), with ancillary office floorspace, an aircraft museum building (Use Class D1) to reflect the site’s WW2 heritage, associated access, car parking and landscaping on land south of Tower Works.
View: Walker Logistics’ existing site in the foreground, a thick bund of trees beyond which lines the application site to the south and west
Location
The site, outlined in red, is part of the Air Depot technical site of the former RAF and USAAF Membury Airfield. It is bounded to the north by the Membury Industrial Estate Protected Employment Area (PEA).
The old airfield runway is to the west behind an established border of trees we planted. On the east, the site is bounded by the Ramsbury Road.
Location - click for larger view
Proposed site layout
Landscaping, including a raised earth bund with native woodland planting and several mature trees, will provide attractive screening of the Dakota building from the Ramsbury Road, as well as improve biodiversity. Other planting, such as a tree lined avenue and a landscaped pond, will further enhance biodiversity and the setting when entering the site.
The existing hedgerow along the Ramsbury Road will be retained and enhanced, except to create the new access. The computer generated image (CGI) below is based on the dimensions and siting of the building, as well as the landscaping scheme. It is taken from the new entranceway on Ramsbury Road, as this is the most exposed angle to the road of the building.
CGI view from Ramsbury Road of new entrance way (after landscaping established – approx 10 years)
The site is sloped where the warehouse is proposed to be built. We will level this and use excavated soil to create a raised bund of earth which will be planted up as per our landscaping scheme. The warehouse will be 12.6m high in accordance with the Outline consent, though the lower section will be screened from Ramsbury Road by the bund.
CGI front of logistics warehouse from within the site, SW of proposed bund
The warehouse has been designed with a dual pitched roof, as can be seen in the CGI above. This design enables the building’s overall height to be lower than if the roof were single pitched.
Below is the current illustrative masterplan.
Indicative site layout - click for larger view
Dakota part-way through restoration
The access off Ramsbury Road leads to visitor and staff operational parking to the south of the building, access for delivery vehicles in a secure yard, and museum parking directly at the entrance to the museum.
Our Dakota aeroplane, a C-47 which currently is being renovated off site, will be housed in the museum when it is not at air shows. It will be brought through access doors on the building’s northern end to the hangar part of the museum. To do this we will create a gap in the band of trees on the western-most part of the application site.
The CGI below illustrates how the northern end will look (there may be minor changes to the doors).
CGI hanger door end view from NNE within the site
Have your say
We’d welcome your views on our proposals before we finalise them. All images and plans in this website are draft to show you where our current thinking is with the landscaping, appearance of the logistics warehouse, museum and site. Please respond by 18 March 2022.
As stated above, West Berkshire Council permitted our Outline application, thereby agreeing that the roads can take the additional vehicle movements that would be created, as well as agreeing the principle of building a logistics warehouse and museum on this site. Broadly the Dakota building will adhere to the indicative Block Plan, maximum floor areas and building height, as specified by Conditions 3 and 5 on the Outline planning permission.
We will review all feedback before working up our final plans to submit a Reserved Matters application to West Berkshire Council, hopefully this Spring.
About Walker Logistics
We are a family owned, responsible business priding ourselves with our association to Membury and the locality. We live in Membury and have for many years been doing philanthropic work in the community. We provide jobs for local residents, support local businesses, community organisations and charities.
The business has been founded upon the Membury site since 1999. We are predominantly an e-commerce fulfilment company focussing on the picking and packing of thousands of small internet orders which are then grouped and despatched at the end of each day.
We are a significant local employer with many staff living within 10 miles which is notable given our location. Staff commuting from further afield, e.g. Reading or Swindon are transported by minibus, a service arranged by us. The proposed development will create further employment opportunities for local residents and we will provide larger occupancy minibuses if necessary, to minimise the need for any additional vehicle movements. Our development will provide cycle parking and lockers, showers and changing facilities to encourage staff to cycle to work.
Downloads
Please find all our available downloads below.