American Lake SPB Closing

On Thursday, Dec. 23, the city of Lakewood announced that it would be
closing the American Lake seaplane base effective Dec. 31, 2004 -- in just 9
days! No hearings or other public input were sought. The decision was made
and announced by Deborah Johnson ). Her phone
number is (253) 983-7770. Those interested in preserving this seaplane base
should contact her and urge her to delay the decision until public hearings
can be conducted by WSDOT.

--
Christopher J. Campbell
World Famous Flight Instructor
Port Orchard, WA


Ne Obliviscaris

On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 10:28:21 -0800, "C J Campbell"
wrote in
::

On Thursday, Dec. 23, the city of Lakewood announced that it would be
closing the American Lake seaplane base effective Dec. 31, 2004 -- in just 9
days! No hearings or other public input were sought.

Have you forwarded this information to AOPA and the FAA?

"Larry Dighera" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 10:28:21 -0800, "C J Campbell"
wrote in
::

On Thursday, Dec. 23, the city of Lakewood announced that it would be
closing the American Lake seaplane base effective Dec. 31, 2004 -- in
just 9
days! No hearings or other public input were sought.

Have you forwarded this information to AOPA and the FAA?

AOPA and the SPA already have it. It was SPA that told me about it.
Obviously WSDOT knows about it. I don't know if anyone has contacted the
FAA, but the more that do the better. Here is the text of their message:

Dear SPA Member:

The City of Lakewood has just informed the Washington State Division of
Aeronautics (WSDOT) that it will be deactivating the American Lake Seaplane
Base near Tacoma effective December 31, 2004 - in 9 days!!

WSDOT is asking the city to delay the closure until a public hearing has
been conducted. American Lake Seaplane Base is identified in the state's
aviation system plan, but is not identified as an essential public facility
in the county's comprehensive plan.

WSDOT is willing to work with the city to develop an operating agreement to
preserve the facility, but they need our help to convince the City of
Lakewood that the facility should be preserved.

Please contact Deborah Johnson with the City of Lakewood,
or 253/983-7770, and let her know that the
American Lake Seaplane Base is an important and irreplaceable element in the
state's aviation infrastructure. Encourage her to work with WSDOT to develop
a long-term solution that preserves this important public facility for
future generations.

While this email will reach many, our email list is far from complete, so
please pass this message along to anyone with an interest in preserving the
American Lake Seaplane Base.

Michael Volk

President,

Seaplane Pilots Association

On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 10:48:24 -0800, "C J Campbell"
wrote in
::


"Larry Dighera" wrote in message
.. .
On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 10:28:21 -0800, "C J Campbell"
wrote in
::

On Thursday, Dec. 23, the city of Lakewood announced that it would be
closing the American Lake seaplane base effective Dec. 31, 2004 -- in
just 9
days! No hearings or other public input were sought.

Have you forwarded this information to AOPA and the FAA?

AOPA and the SPA already have it. It was SPA that told me about it.
Obviously WSDOT knows about it. I don't know if anyone has contacted the
FAA, but the more that do the better. Here is the text of their message:

Thanks for the full text.

It would seem that the City of Lakewood would be in violation of the
required 30-day notice to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
of the deactivation of an airport in the NAS if they follow through
with their plan. The notice requirement is intended to allow the FAA
to study proposed actions that may affect the national airspace system
prior to the actions being taken. According to FAA regulations, a
maximum penalty of $1,100 per day can be assessed for a violation of
this type.

Here's the relevant FAA regulation Part 157:
http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text...1.2.12&idno=14

Additional information he http://www.faa.gov/ARP/ace/part157.cfm

[E-mailed to Deborah Johnson with the City of Lakewood]

On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 10:28:21 -0800, "C J Campbell"
wrote:

On Thursday, Dec. 23, the city of Lakewood announced that it would be
closing the American Lake seaplane base effective Dec. 31, 2004 -- in just 9
days! No hearings or other public input were sought. The decision was made
and announced by Deborah Johnson ). Her phone
number is (253) 983-7770. Those interested in preserving this seaplane base
should contact her and urge her to delay the decision until public hearings
can be conducted by WSDOT.


Typical government fast one. I just called and she's out of the
office until the 29th, which only gives two days to have a change
made!

Might be worthwhile to call AOPA about this one.

If you repost her number on the 29th, I'll definately give her a call.

z

Larry Dighera wrote:

According to FAA regulations, a
maximum penalty of $1,100 per day can be assessed for a violation of
this type.

According to a recent AOPA article, that penalty was just substantially
increased. I've found several references to the increase (called the "Miegs
Legacy" ammendment), but can't find documentation of the exact amount.

That said, there may not be any violation. It's quite possible that the
authorities gave the FAA notice last month but didn't make a public announcement
about it. Let's hope that isn't the case.

George Patterson
The desire for safety stands against every great and noble enterprise.

The 30 day notice is for "emergency" closings. Non-emergency closings require 90 days.

That said, I'm pretty sure the notice requirement doesn't apply unless the landing facility is part of the National Plan of Integrated
Airports. I'm not sure how many seaplane bases come under that heading. It also matters if the airport has an instrument approach which
some (most?) SPBs do not. Having an IAP is reason behind the minimum 30 day notice: the charting cycle is 28 days, therefore there's
enough time to include the closing in the next release.

Dave Reinhart


Larry Dighera wrote:

On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 10:48:24 -0800, "C J Campbell"
wrote in
::


"Larry Dighera" wrote in message
.. .
On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 10:28:21 -0800, "C J Campbell"
wrote in
::

On Thursday, Dec. 23, the city of Lakewood announced that it would be
closing the American Lake seaplane base effective Dec. 31, 2004 -- in
just 9
days! No hearings or other public input were sought.

Have you forwarded this information to AOPA and the FAA?

AOPA and the SPA already have it. It was SPA that told me about it.
Obviously WSDOT knows about it. I don't know if anyone has contacted the
FAA, but the more that do the better. Here is the text of their message:

Thanks for the full text.

It would seem that the City of Lakewood would be in violation of the
required 30-day notice to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
of the deactivation of an airport in the NAS if they follow through
with their plan. The notice requirement is intended to allow the FAA
to study proposed actions that may affect the national airspace system
prior to the actions being taken. According to FAA regulations, a
maximum penalty of $1,100 per day can be assessed for a violation of
this type.

Here's the relevant FAA regulation Part 157:
http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text...1.2.12&idno=14

Additional information he http://www.faa.gov/ARP/ace/part157.cfm

[E-mailed to Deborah Johnson with the City of Lakewood]

On Sat, 25 Dec 2004 04:05:19 GMT, "G.R. Patterson III"
wrote in ::

Larry Dighera wrote:

According to FAA regulations, a
maximum penalty of $1,100 per day can be assessed for a violation of
this type.

According to a recent AOPA article, that penalty was just substantially
increased.

I had heard rumor that such was in the works, but hadn't heard that it
was law yet.

I've found several references to the increase (called the "Miegs
Legacy" ammendment), but can't find documentation of the exact amount.

As search using those terms (and even with the correct spelling of
'amendment') failed to turn up anything for me. If you are able to
provide any links to articles referencing it, I'd be interested.

That said, there may not be any violation.

Given the fact that the sea plane base is still open, there's
definitely no violation yet.

It's quite possible that the
authorities gave the FAA notice last month but didn't make a public announcement
about it. Let's hope that isn't the case.

At best, that will only delay the inevitable for 30-days unless the
FAA finds that deactivation will affect the national airspace system.
Now if the city of Lakewood has received AIP funds (unlikely for a sea
plane base) in the last 20 years, there might be some hope of delaying
the closure.

On Sat, 25 Dec 2004 16:00:37 GMT, David Reinhart
wrote in
::

The 30 day notice is for "emergency" closings. Non-emergency closings require 90 days.

Thanks for the information.

That said, I'm pretty sure the notice requirement doesn't apply unless
the landing facility is part of the National Plan of Integrated
Airports. I'm not sure how many seaplane bases come under that heading.

http://www.faa.gov/ncarc/whitepaper/airports/
The Secretary of Transportation, in a biennial report to Congress,
is required to identify those airports that are important to
national transportation and, therefore, eligible to receive grants
under the Airport Improvement Program (AIP). This report--the
National Plan of Integrated Airports (NPIAS)--currently designates
3,331 of the 18,292 existing airports in the United States as
components in the national system.

Given the above information, it would appear that there is about an
18% chance of a US airport being included in the National Plan of
Integrated Airports. As you intimated, it's even less likely for a
sea plane base with an average of 67 operations a month.

It also matters if the airport has an instrument approach which.
some (most?) SPBs do not. Having an IAP is reason behind the minimum
30 day notice: the charting cycle is 28 days, therefore there's
enough time to include the closing in the next release.

http://www.airnav.com/airport/W37
W37 American Lake Seaplane Base
Tacoma, Washington, USA

The information at the above link indicates that there is no IAP.

"Larry Dighera" wrote in message
...

Given the above information, it would appear that there is about an
18% chance of a US airport being included in the National Plan of
Integrated Airports. As you intimated, it's even less likely for a
sea plane base with an average of 67 operations a month.

Even WSDOT has not identified the base as essential. It is going to be a
tough fight.