WI airport closure

The letter is nice, but you might consider a little stronger approach if
you are a voting resident. Tell the council chief and/or the members
WIIFM (What's in it for me - or in this case... them). If these are
elected officials who wish to stay elected officials (and most do), you
might approach this as a reelection issue. Tell the council you would
like to work for their reelection if you can get them to agree on the
airport "issue". If they agree, go to the local newspaper and tell your
story about the benefits to the community and how the council backs
"saving" the airport. They are then committed.

If they will not agree, seek out any challengers and see if they want to
run on a "save the local airport" issue. Point out the votes to be had
from all the "poor" innocent "victims" who will be out of work. Portray
the developer as the greedy rich person who will sweep away all the
"little people's" jobs without care one.

Hey, it works for other stuff.

Good Luck,
Mike

Kobra wrote:

I sent this:

Ms. Zeiler,

Please let this letter serve to admonish the council that I am against the
closure of our airport. These small airports serve the community by
bringing in pilots and their passengers to patronize our township businesses
and allowing modern and convenient transportation to remote areas such as
ours.

Airports such as these serves as a homebase for many local people running
small businesses. These include flight schools, flight instructors,
aircraft rental, fuel sales, aircraft mechanics, aircraft sales, restaurants
and the like. It also serves as a gathering place for local pilots and a
place parents bring their children to watch small aircraft take-off and
depart. They look up wide-eyed and ask our local pilots how they too can
become a pilot one day. I was lucky enough to be one of those children long
ago.

There is also a larger and greater good served by being part of the national
airspace system. Closing an airport is like removing part of the turnpike
because some residents don't like it or you want to build a strip mall
there. But that road is part of a national transportation system and serves
a greater good.

Airports are communities in their own right and please don't take ours away.
It makes our community unique. I don't want to be the grandparent pointing
at a group of houses and explaining that one time long ago we had small
airport here. Saying that I would have loved to bring you here to see the
planes, the pilots and how we could have had a hamburger at the airport
grill, but all can show you now are these houses.

These airports were built decades ago when aviation was barely realized.
Now aviation is almost fully matured and closing an airport like this is a
step backward...not a step forward.

A resident, a parent and a pilot

after all, I am a resident somewhere...right?

Kobra



"Jim Burns" wrote in message
...

The village of Grantsburg, WI is considering closing their public
municipal
airport.

Grantsburg is located along the western WI border, approximately 1/2 way
between St. Paul (MN) and Duluth (MN)/Superior (WI)
They have posted this public notice on their community web page -
http://www.airstreamcomm.net/~gtsbgwi/ .

I appeal to the members of the groups to please help save this airport.
Even if you have never visited Grantsburg, WI you - as pilots- can respond
and help educate the village and show your support for it's EAA chapter
who's email addresses are listed below. Please remind the village that an
airport is a valuable service that brings unseen economic benefit to the
community. Village, city, and county services as a general rule do not
directly produce an income large enough to be self sustaining, but through
these services the village and surrounding residents and businesses
benefit
and prosper. This is especially important in remote areas of the country.
I noticed that the village of Grantsburg has found it beneficial to join
the
world wide web via their own IP address, how ironic that they should feel
their airport no less important or beneficial. Please show your support
to
the local EAA chapter by sending your thoughts to
and forwarding a copy to
, the local EAA Chapter leader.

Thanks,

Jim Burns





PUBLIC NOTICE
The Grantsburg Village Board will be considering the possible closure of

the Grantsburg Municipal Airport at the April 11, 2005 regular Village
Board
Meeting.

The Village Board is looking at the amount of use the airport receives,

the number of people the airport serves and the close proximity of the
Siren, Wisconsin and Rush City, Minnesota airports.

Any comments can be sent to: Village of Grantsburg, 316 South Brad
Street,

Grantsburg, Wisconsin 54840 or emailed to:


POSTED ON WEB PAGE: 2/28/05
Jennifer Zeiler
Village Clerk


The airport issue revolves around operating costs and usage. Right now

due to low usage the airport costs exceed the available income. Like all
small communities, the airport and village officials are very concerned
that
this continuing expense will have an adverse impact on all the other
services they offer their community.

Part of the problem at the airport is that there are only 11 hangars and

no fuel available. The airport and village officials have talked with the
WI DOT Bureau of Aeronautics about applying for airport improvement funds,
but are concerned that accepting the "keep the airport open to the public
for 20 years" commitment attached to those funds would not prevent the
continuing drain on their local funds. Right now the Village and the
airport do not have any federal commitments that require them to keep the
airport open.

In order to help the airport and village officials make an informed

decision, we are asking you to answer these questions and then e-mail them
to the village officials at and to provide
a
copy of your answers to the leaders of EAA Chapter 875 which operates from
that airport at: .

1. Have you used the Grantsburg Municipal airport (GTG) in the last 5

years?

2. Will you use the airport in the next 5 years?

3. If the airport and village accepted federal funding to install a

self-service fuel pump for avgas, would that affect your decision to use
the
airport in the next 5 years?

4. If the airport and village accepted federal funding to build more

general aviation hangars, would you consider hangaring your aircraft
and/or
ultralight vehicle there?

5. Does your aircraft use an auto-fuel STC?

6. Do you plan on converting your ultralight vehicle into an
experimental

light-sport aircraft and/or do you anticipate purchasing a new special
light-sport aircraft?

7. Would you use the airport more if they accepted federal funding to

install a self-service fuel pump for non-ethanol blended autofuel, which
the
aircraft in questions 4 and 5 require?

8. Does the close proximity of the Siren/Burnett County, WI (RZN) and
the

Rush City Regional, MN (ROS) public airports affect your decision on using
the Grantsburg (GTG) airport?

9. Do you have any other General Comments you can provide to the airport

and village officials that would be useful to them in their decisionmaking
process? If so, what are they?

10. Have you attended the annual Pancake Breakfast and EAA Young Eagles

event Chapter 875 holds at the aiport?

EAA would also be interested in receiving a copy of your answers - e-mail

them to us at .

Answering this survey is a great example of EAA members helping other

members with the issues that effect us all on a daily basis. Thank you
for
considering this request.

Randy Hansen
Government Relations Director
Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA)
PO Box 3086
Oshkosh, WI 54903

920-426-6522
888-322-4636, 1 then ext. 6522
(f) 920-426-4885 or 6560

http://eaa.org/
http://www.sportpilot.org/
Mark your 2005 calendar for the World's Greatest Aviation Celebration ...

EAA AirVenture Oshkosh ... Monday, July 25th through Sunday, July 31st.
http://www.airventure.org/






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