Photo courtesy of Allegheny County,
Pa.
Allegheny County, Pa. Board of Commissioners Chairman Larry Dunn is very
happy with the recently struck deal that makes the Allegheny County Airport
the first in the nation to go private under new federal legislation.
The Allegheny County Airport in West Mifflin, Pa., will soon be under private management, becoming the first general aviation airport in the nation to take advantage of a new pilot program approved last year by Congress.
Following a unanimous decision by Allegheny County Commissioners Larry Dunn, Bob Cranmer and Mike Dawida at a public meeting last month, Aviation Director Gary Bishop has been directed to negotiate a long-term lease of the facility with COMARCO, Inc., of Washington, D.C.
Under the pilot program, one general aviation airport in the country may be leased under a long-term agreement to a private company without having to refund federal grants given to the airport. The legislation allows, for the first time in American history, profits generated from a publicly-owned, privately-managed airport to be shared by the two entities.
"It was imperative for the county to act quickly to take advantage of this pilot program," said Dunn. "The Allegheny County Airport is an important, but underutilized, county asset. This outsourcing initiative will allow us to generate significant dollars in economic activity for the airport and enhance development opportunities in the Mon Valley."
While all terms are still negotiable, the financial value of the proposal to Allegheny County ranges from a minimum of $25 million to more than $42 million over the lease period. Moreover, the company has committed to immediate capital improvements and to move its Airport Management Division from Washington, D.C., to Allegheny County, thus adding jobs and a new corporate member to the local economy.
The deal has four parts:
Commercial development plans include a World War II-theme restaurant at the terminal; construction of public self-storage units, office condominiums, and a light cargo and small package-handling facility, and an increased emphasis on rental car facilities.
"I have long felt that a professional management team could operate the county airport more effectively which could further stimulate economic activity in the area," stated Dawida.
The Allegheny County Airport is one of the nation's more active noncommercial airports. Its three runways operate 24 hours a day, and are used for more than 140,000 take-offs and landings annually, having the capacity for more than 200,000 aircraft movements annually and can accommodate mid-sized commercial aircraft such as Boeing 737s. The airport encompasses 432 acres and 80 hangars. About 224 aircraft are based at the airport.
The airport outsourcing initiative was a campaign promise of the Republican majority commissioners. However, the process really took off in October, when President Clinton signed into law the Airport Improvement Program Reauthorization, which created a pilot program allowing five commercial airports and one general aviation airport owned by state and local governments the flexibility to enter into public-private partnerships without refunding federal grants previously given to the airports.
Subsequently, the county retained two of the world's leading advisory firms to help it evaluate the strategic alternatives available to the county airport: Infrastructure Management Group, Inc. (IMG) and Rothschild, Inc.