Airport's 1937 building is listed

17 January 2014

The Minister for Planning, Deputy Rob Duhamel, has listed the 1937 building at Jersey Airport because of its national heritage importance.

Under Jersey’s Planning Law, the Minister must list a building if he is satisfied that its special interest is of public importance. The 1937 building is a rare example of airports first built in the early days of air travel. As a result, it is nationally significant and has been assigned Grade 2 Listed Building status.

The national heritage significance of the building has been revisited in recent times and, on the basis of national expert opinion and a recommendation from Jersey Heritage, Deputy Duhamel has decided to add the building to Jersey’s list of Sites of Special Interest.

The 1937 building and its context have changed significantly since it was first built, and today it houses airport arrivals, offices for airport staff, and the Met Department. However, the main features of the original building are still clearly evident and the building is considered to have a rich historical association with significant people and events in Jersey, and elsewhere.

Architect designed BBC TV Centre

The architect of the building, Graham Dawbarn, also designed the iconic former BBC TV Centre in Shepherd’s Bush. The 1937 building was a proposed Site of Special Interest until February 2002 when a previous Planning and Environment Committee removed its listed status.

The decision on whether to list the building has been delayed recently because the Planning Department was waiting for the outcome of a case in the Appeal Court. The Court's recent ruling confirmed that any decision on whether to list important Jersey buildings must be made on the heritage value of the building alone, and not on the state of the building, the cost of repairing it or the planning implications of listing it.

Once listed, owners must apply for permission to make any changes to that building which might affect its special interest. Listed buildings can be altered, extended and, in very exceptional circumstances, even demolished, but those decisions are made in a separate application process.