Attracting Aviation Businesses -- How?

john smith wrote:
Jay Masino wrote:
Through the Fence Operations

Not there is a VERY delicate topic. Unless you are dealing with total
morons, you have less than a snowball' chance in Hell of getting
something like that through a municipally owned facility. Remember, they
are looking for as much money as they can get. If it isn't going to
generate revenue, you aren't likely to get it.

From what I understand, there are some municipal airports that allow it,
but they charge a fee to the Through the Fence operator. Some do it as a
monthly fee, some do it every time the operator taxies onto the airport
(using a card key and electric gate setup).

-- Jay
__!__
Jay and Teresa Masino ___(_)___
http://www2.ari.net/jmasino/ ! ! !

Checkout http://www.oc-adolfos.com/
for the best Italian food in Ocean City, MD and...
Checkout http://www.brolow.com/ for authentic Blues music on Delmarva

Jim Weir wrote:
Unless Iowa runs by different rules, your airport commission is appointed by the
county board of commissioners. THAT is the place to apply pressure. I'd ask
for a rezone on that carved out parcel that is tied to a conditional use permit
process. That way everybody gets a say in what goes in.

The FAA has an Advisory Circular on Compatible Land Use.
Getting Zoning Codes changed MAY take quite a bit of time, depending on
the bureaucracy you are dealing with.
In Columbus Ohio, it took us six years to implement Airport Environs
Overlay Zoning Ordinances from inception to legislation passage. This
deals primarily with residential construction and remodeling on land
underlying and within the 65 ldn noise contours (see your Part 151 Noise
Study for your airport, these should be updated every five years). Also,
have you obtained a copy of your Airport Master Plan? This lays out the
5-, 10-, 20-year goals for airport improvements.
Does your state have an Aviation Department? What services do they
provide? They should be administering the Federal funds they receive as
part of the federal AIR-21 legislation.
Each state has its own program, many provide runway and taxiway overlay
project grants to general aviation airports. Feds pay 90%, state pays
5%, local government pays 5%. If you are paying a fuel tax to the state,
an excise tax on aircraft parts, aircraft registration, you should be
getting something back in the form of services listed above.

Why would they close the airport? Looking at AirNav, it's the only viable
non-private airport in Iowa City. Unless they were to build another
airport, they would be commiting economic suicide to close a major route of
commerce. It shouldn't be a matter of making the airport itself profitable,
but rather a matter of how much commerce the airport provides to the city.
How do people commute, how do goods and services flow into and out of the
city? What kinds of business can they hope to retain and attract in the
future, etc. etc.

Not sure how far Cedar Rapids is from Iowa City though...

I'd be glad to give you business on my way up to Minnesota/Wisconsin from
Texas one of these days though!

Jason Kennemer

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:NRGTa.130627$N7.18387@sccrnsc03...
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"

"Jay Masino" wrote in
In fact, it would seem that mid-size municipally owned airports almost
never operate without subsidies and grants.

Nor do the streets, nor do the ditches, nor does the municipal boat launch,
nor does the park, nor does the mosquito commission, nor do the traffic
lights, nor does the water department... In fact there is not a single
governmental service that does not require the tax payers to support it, and
usually the commissioners are beating the drum for more money to put into
these services... Only when it involves the public airport does it suddenly
become an unnecessary service...

I have publically confronted some of our county commissioners (politely) who
object to the airport and as soon as I point out the illogic in their
position I get:
"Well, ummm errr, you don't understand. The parks are a line item in the
budget and the airport is an additional expense that we have to take money
from some other service to cover."
"So, make the airport a line item in the budget!"
"Oh, we couldn't do that."

"Jay Masino" wrote in message ...


From what I understand, there are some municipal airports that allow it,
but they charge a fee to the Through the Fence operator. Some do it as a
monthly fee, some do it every time the operator taxies onto the airport
(using a card key and electric gate setup).

I know when they were getting ready to develop land uphill from the airport
at VKX, those with property immedately ajoining the field (oddly zoned for
a large "accessory structure" on the rear property line) were going to be
assesed a fee to allow you to taxi from your property out onto the field.

I've generally found that when a public utility such as an airport is
criticized as unprofitable, the public officials usually have another
use in mind for that land. I hate to be pessimistic, but most times
its a foregone conclusion that the airport is a goner.

(AJ) writes:

I've generally found that when a public utility such as an airport
is criticized as unprofitable, the public officials usually have
another use in mind for that land. I hate to be pessimistic, but
most times its a foregone conclusion that the airport is a goner.

That's why I suggested getting a coalition of business owners together
to take control of the airport now, before any ideas like that are
fully-formed -- offer the city $100 for a 99-year least and promise to
handle future operating costs (but not the existing debt, of course).
If it makes life easier, call it an "airport industrial park".


All the best,


David

--
David Megginson, , http://www.megginson.com/

Unfortunately, most businesses will go where the rent is cheap.


"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:NRGTa.130627$N7.18387@sccrnsc03...
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"

Another tack worth thinking about is carving the airport out of the city into a
special use district...sort of a "city within a city". Once this happens, the
city council has absolutely no say about how the airport is run, but the
district also has to be self-funding with a nominal tax base set by the election
that forms the district.

Jim



David Megginson
shared these priceless pearls of wisdom:

-That's why I suggested getting a coalition of business owners together
-to take control of the airport now, before any ideas like that are
-fully-formed
Jim Weir (A&P/IA, CFI, & other good alphabet soup)
VP Eng RST Pres. Cyberchapter EAA Tech. Counselor
http://www.rst-engr.com

Unfortunately, many small governments have gotten _Washingtonitis_.
The only thing that they are looking for is money in their pockets and
in their control. To them, money in the pockets of the citizens is not
a good thing.
--
Gene Seibel
Hangar 131 - http://pad39a.com/gene/plane.html


Biggest attraction/repulsion will be the taxation of a local business on
the airport.
Is there an economic advantage/disadvantage to being an airport based
business?
How does your city tax airport based businesses?
Is there a gross receipts tax placed on any business operating on the
airport?
What are rents like?
Is there a difference in how much rent a business is charged across the
street from the airport?
Is there difference in how much a business is taxed if they are located
across the street from the airport?
Are rents calculated on square footage of ramp space? Hangar space?
Office space? Combinations?
How much are additional state/local (county/city) taxes?
What are potential businesses looking for to locate at your facility?
What are the advantages of operating at IOW?
If I fly my airplane in for services, how do I get home if I leave it
there?
What is the labor market like? Union/non-union? Skilled/un-skilled?
How trainable are the graduates of the local secondary schools?
Access to materials?
If the local controlling body doesn't make the facility attractive to
business, it won't be.
These are some of the questions I have heard brought up at various
meetings I have attended.