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The Cold War Museum


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Having been a trustee of a charity some years back, may I make a suggestion? Get one person who has no knowledge of the subject, but a good buissness head. Does help to wind some of the wilder fantasise we are all prone to. :-D

 

Tony,

 

good idea, I have certainly got the business head. But I am full of ideas too...and I have always fulfilled my fantasies...no matter how wild...but I have a long way to go yet...

 

Paul

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  • 5 months later...

we are gearing up to get our first of many planning application in...its a long slow process and to be honest a little daunting because on the whim of a few people, with no vivion it could all end here...well until I find another place, its just that this place is so perfect...

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  • 1 month later...

okay the plans are basically done and the application should be submitted some time early next year...I am hopeful that in 12 months the museum will be open, I will be retired and be focused on doing my museum every day of the week..

 

I have a few friends who have offered to donate vehicle to the museum, that is brilliant, they get free storage i get another item to display, its a win win situation.  Just got to get the building up first...and then dig in

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  • 1 month later...

okay excellent preliminary news.  I have a lot of work to do, there is a surprise, but in reality I think if I complete all the work and do it to the right standard, the council/planning department will likely support my application.  as the planning officer said it is not particularly easy and whilst I have some policy on board some is against me so i need good justification.  The task is on

If anyone considers themselves to be experts on the cold war I would like to hear from them. 

I need to ask people to write me letters of support.

 

The further and wider they come from the better. 

 

The museum needs to be built this year and I am pushing really hard, I have a lot of reports to have done and am working very hard to get all the ducks in a row so that i can open towards the middle of the year.  

Phase 1 will be under three rather large aircraft hanger,  marquee type buildings which will eventually be replaced with a partially submerged 3 story  building followed by the phase 2 which will be the  fully underground bunker part. Phase 3 will be silo number 2. 

 Year 1 we will have the trucks and tanks we have now...British, Russian, German, American and European stuff...etc.  loads of engines to display and guns and bombs and other historical stuff from the period.    we are building a museum of all the publications about the cold war, as much as we can get...its a long steady process...but priority is getting the thing open and getting vehicles worked on as soon as possible under cover.

Year 2 will see expansion of the military equipment to include more iconic Cold war vehicles.  We are hoping at this time to include some aircraft types including Tornado,  Harrier and Jaguar.  All items yet to be sorted but that is the plan.

year 3 we will see the potential installation of our target aircraft, the aim being to have them with running engines for display purposes......I am on the trawl for a number of other machines.  The hanger building will be installed again underground.

year 4  the maritime services are to be represented in the cold war museum...some maritime guns and  other paraphernalia.

 

Anyone who has a vehicle, a memento, an item of history, a picture a anything that represents the period  and they would not mind it being displayed in the museum,  I am very keen to hear from you.

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Be aware, if you aren't already, that there is an existing National Cold War Exhibition at RAF Cosford.  Just in case anyone says anything - forewarned is forearmed.

I share your pain with planning, I wouldn't have thought that building a barn in an empty field could be so much of a problem.  A year and two refusals on, I'm now going through the appeal process.

Andy

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Paul,

 

what format do you want the letter of support? A word document in an email? I think you may have had an easier ride if you were across the border in Woking, their planning dept seem to be a bit more lenient...according to a builder mate, Guildford is a much harder nut to crack!

 

Mick

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Hi Andy, yes know it very well. Cosford of course, is not a dedicated Cold War museum. It only focuses on the Air side of the Cold War and is mostly interested in the British view. My Cold War museum will address the whole scenario including the US the European, the German, the eastern European annexed territories, the wars started by the principles of the Cold War that were not the Cold War, etc etc etc. And whilst the Vulcan the valiant the victor all played their part, the Cold War was more than just a few intercepts by Lightning’s and phantoms of Tu 95 bears. I totally love Cosford though. Fantastic museum. I hope to be able to loan stuff from such high laces in the future. 

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12 hours ago, MiketheBike said:

Paul,

 

what format do you want the letter of support? A word document in an email? I think you may have had an easier ride if you were across the border in Woking, their planning dept seem to be a bit more lenient...according to a builder mate, Guildford is a much harder nut to crack!

 

Mick

Email letters addressed to the Cold War museum stating your interest and support. Would be perfect. 

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Hi Paul ,

Have you paid the small fee and had the planning dept come to you for a pre application meeting . If you consider the application to be delicate then that would either confirm you views or relax you !

If you consider it delicate , then your appointment of a good planning consultant preferably ex the planning dept you are dealing with will be money well spent in my experience.

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John

yes we did that and they are loosely supportive as long as I can justify it they will come with me.  they have basically given me the green light.  they are not against it.  it is very very exciting at last we could be seeing my past 30 years of ambition coming to fruition...but i have to say its crazy that anything i the UK can take a lifetime to achieve...in the US i would be open next week, in the UK it takes 30 years...no wonder the world has left us behind...

 

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thanks for those who have made contact so far...if you are interested in sending me a letter of support you can email it to 

 

paul.obrien@thecoldwarmuseum.com

 

any letters of support will be gratefully welcome and will be used as part of the planning application.  i will erase names and address for that purpose but if you let me know you are happy for me to keep your name and address on the letter then that is fine.  it will ONLY be used for the planning application.

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Guys thank you so far...i have had a handful of supporting emails...these are brilliant, if you could add in your name and address this would be marvellous.  the councils are so sceptical they would likely accuse me of writing the letters myself.  Not my way at all.   

 

Anyway thanks so far, if anyone else can be persuaded to write letters of support that would be great thank you./..

 

send to paul.obrien@thecoldwarmuseum.com

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