Attracting Aviation Businesses -- How?

Many of you know that our local newspaper has been on the war-path to close
our local airport. Oh, they don't say it *that* way -- they couch it in
terms of "profitability" and "taxpayer's subsidies" -- but that's what they
really mean. No one -- from the Mayor on down to the citizenry -- seriously
believes that the airport (a GA airport all the way) could be made
"profitable".

But what if we could close the gap a bit? Our inn has come a long ways in
the first 11 months we've been open, and we're generating a pretty steady
stream of fly-in visitors from all over the country -- which has helped --
but what if we could make Iowa City a "one-stop shopping center" for you
airplane owners?

What if you could come here and visit a first-class avionics shop, along the
lines of a "Pacific Coast Avionics"? And what if you could get your
interior reupholstered here, too? And how about a paint shop, while we're
dreaming?

Currently Iowa has successful versions of all these services, but they are
scattered all over the map. We've got a paint shop in little Maquoketa, and
an aircraft upholstery shop in Clinton, and an avionics place in Waterloo.
Getting anything done is a royal pain in the butt. Wouldn't it be cool --
and beneficial to ALL -- if we could consolidate them all here in Iowa City?

A pilot (such as yourself) could come visit for a few days, enjoy a Big Ten
basketball/football/wrestling/baseball (whatever!) game, take in a play or
performance, enjoy the college town ambiance, stay at our aviation themed
inn -- all while having your new leather interior installed! Or while
having that GNS-430 put in the panel.

I personally think this would be great for ALL the businesses (sort of the
same theory as putting all the car dealers on the same stretch of road in a
city), and would generate a self-sustaining perpetual motion machine of
aviation business in Iowa City -- thus saving the airport, and (of course)
enhancing our business.

But how? How the heck do you attract business like this to your airport?
Any ideas?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"