Bert Willing wrote:
I've flown for years on a public airport (Braunschweig) in Germany with a
CTR, jet aircrafts, parachuters and 4 double-drum winches operated by 5
clubs. Winch launch was the standard method, aerotow something we did once
in a while.

But Braunschweig has a wide grass area parallel to the paved runway.
This does not apply to most public airfields in the US.