Green light for Greenham Common control tower visitor centre plan

The control tower has been disused since the base closed in 1993

Plans to turn a Cold War airbase control centre into a visitor centre and viewing gallery have moved a step closer.

West Berkshire Council has recommended Greenham Common control tower be sold to Greenham's parish council.

The proposed sale follows a 1,292-signature petition to keep the tower in local hands.

The control tower has been disused since the base closed in 1993.

Built in the early 1950s, the tower helped the base play a strategic role in the cold war.

The base was the focus for anti-nuclear protests when US cruise missiles were located there in the 1980s.

Following the airbase's closure, Greenham Common became a public open space in 2000 and is now home to a nature reserve and business park.

Councillor Julian Swift-Hook, who led the campaign, said he was "delighted" at the news.

He said the new visitor centre would have information boards displaying the social, Cold War and natural history of the area, as well as a viewing gallery and a cafe.