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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Minutes - Aviation Advisory Commission - Meeting Date: 11/12/2014 MINUTES AVIATION ADVISORY COMMISSION GLENDALE MUNICIPAL AIRPORT 6801 N. GLEN HARBOR BLVD - SUITE 201 GLENDALE,ARIZONA 85307 AIRPORT CONFERENCE ROOM NOVEMBER 12,2014 6:00 P.M. I. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 6:15 p.m. by Chair Victoria Rogen with the following Commissioners present: Walt Chaney, Quentin Tolby, and Joe Mascaro. Also present were Walter Fix, Airport Administrator; James Gruber, Assistant City Attorney; Cathy Colbath, Deputy Public Works Director; Michelle Robinson, Something Special Aviation Café II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING Commissioner Tolby motioned to approve the October 8, 2014 meeting minutes as written. Commissioner Chaney made the second. The motion carried 4 - 0 III. REQUEST FOR CONTINUANCE OR WITHDRAWAL OF ITEMS. None. IV.AIRPORT BUSINESS Mr. Fix provided updates on the following: 1. Renewal of Commissioners & Loyalty Oath: Commissioner Tolby's term has been renewed and he signed a new Loyalty Oath this evening. Commissioner Escudero's term was also renewed; however, due to his absence at the meeting he will have to sign the Oath at a later time. It was noted that Commissioner Hadley has resigned. 2. Aviation Advisory Commission Changes: Chair Rogen was presented with a plaque for her service on the Commission from 2010 through 2014 and certificate for her recent service as Chair. Chair Rogen thanked Mr. Fix and stated that being on the Commission has been a lot of fun and a good learning experience. 3. Something Special Aviation Café Presentation: Ms. Michelle Robinson, co-owner and manager, provided details on the restaurant and catering operation which included the following highlights: • In Flight Services is the parent company, which is based out of the Scottsdale Airpark. • The café has been open for a week now and has received good feedback and patronage. • The cafe will serve diners as well as provide catering services. • The café has already hosted more than 30 members of the West Valley Flying Club. 1 • For the Super Bowl, the café will handle aviation catering for the Super Bowl for in-flight services for the Glendale and Goodyear Airports. Planeside delivery will be available at Glendale and delivery to Goodyear. The café will be open during the Super Bowl for diners and grab-n-go deli will also be made available. The Café will work closely with the Glendale FBO for the game and throughout the year. • Marketing of the café will be done via various aviation websites and the City of Glendale Chamber of Commerce. Commissioner Mascaro inquired as to the hours of service. Ms. Robinson explained that the café is open seven days a week from 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Ms. Robinson added that the café can be booked for private events as well. Chair Rogen asked about staffing. Ms. Robinson stated that more staff will be hired as demand necessitates. Chair Rogen thanked Ms. Robinson for her presentation. 4. Flying Cacti Business Proposal: Mr. Fix discussed the business plan that was submitted by Mr. Frank Hoephner who intends to enter into a land lease with the City and develop a Light Sport Aircraft maintenance and flight training facility. The plan was provided to the Commissioners prior to the meeting for review. Mr. Fix explained that the business will be located at the south end of the Airport. Mr. Fix stated that feedback received from the Commission would be shared with Mr. Hoephner. Commissioner Mascaro asked about revenue to the Airport from the lease. Mr. Fix explained that the Airport would enter into a SASO land lease at the market rate. Additionally, the Airport would receive a percentage of maintenance revenue and $50.00 per month for each aircraft used in flight training. Commissioner Mascaro inquired if the company would be liable for the hangars. Mr. Fix replied in the positive and added that the details will be included in the lease. Commissioner Tolby stated that he read the business plan and learned a lot about Light Sport Aircraft that he had not been aware of. Commissioner Tolby hoped that the business would get off the ground and become successful. Commissioner Tolby added that this type of business is a growing industry and it could be a good opportunity for the Airport. Mr. Fix commented that Mr. Hoephner's Light Sport Aircraft have Rotax engines which use regular 91 octane gasoline, which is automotive fuel. The fuel will have to be brought on site and most likely stored in a gravity tank. The Airport will still receive a nine-cent per gallon flowage fee. Commissioner Chaney asked if the fuel could also be sold to incoming aircraft. Mr. Fix stated that this is a brand new concept and it would have to be discussed and worked into the lease. Commissioner Chaney asked if the FAA would have an opinion on the fuel issue. Mr. Fix replied that the FAA has approved and certified use of the 91 octane fuel for the Rotax engine. Commissioner Tolby explained that many aircraft can now be certified for automotive fuel depending on the engine. Chair Rogen asked if there would be regulations in place for storing the automotive fuel. Mr. Fix replied in the positive. Commissioner Chaney agreed that Light Sport Aircraft is a new industry which is coming on strong and was happy to see it coming to the Airport. 2 Mr. Fix thanked the Commissioners for the feedback and asked for any additional comments to be sent via email. 5. Status of City of Glendale Boards & Commissions Websites: Mr. Fix announced that the individual webpages for the Boards and Commissions on the City of Glendale website will be improved with more information and additional embedded links. V. SUMMARY OF CURRENT EVENTS Mr. Fix reported on current airport activities: • Construction Projects/Grants o Runway Slurry Seal Project: The project has been officially closed out. o Apron and Lighting Project: The contracts are scheduled to go before Council for approval on November 24th. Construction will not start until February 5th, which is after the Super Bowl. ADOT will provide $110,604 grant for the project. The Airport must put up a match totaling 4.47% of the total cost. o ACIP: Mr. Fix continues to work with ADOT on changes to the 2016-20 Airport Capital Improvement Plan. o The Airport is working on the land grant from ADOT for the ConAir property. The grant amount is estimated at $1.5 million. However, a settlement still has not been reached with ConAir and the City of Glendale still does not have clear title to the land. • Budget/Expenses/Revenues o Mr. Fix distributed a report on Airport revenues and expenses. Mr. Fix commented that even more detailed can information be found by accessing www.glendaleaz.com and clicking on the Follow Your Money link. Mr. Fix explained that details for revenues and expenses for all City departments can be found on this link. Mr. Fix noted the high cost of insurance for the Airport and hoped this would decrease for the upcoming year now that the Airport is FAA compliant. o The Airport has come to an agreement with the John F. Long group for charitable donations to the Airport. In a week or so, the first check of approximately $9,000 will be sent to the Airport. Up to $50,000 a year beginning next year will be donated to the Airport for use against the Airport shortfall. The City and Airport staff are very appreciative for the donation. • Airport Business Activity/Economic Development o This week, Mr. Fix met with Mr. Brian Hufft, who is handling the sales of the hangars owned by Valley Aviation Services. Information on the sale of hangars to the public will be posted soon on their website. o EC Source is running out of room at their current box hangar and is proposing to build another. The Commission will be kept apprised of the plan. • Land Use Planning/Zoning o Mr. Fix distributed a copy of a letter he sent to the Village Planner of the City of Phoenix regarding formal opposition to the proposed residential development of an undeveloped parcel of Camelback Ranch near the Airport. Various Directors, Managers and Staff of the cities of Glendale and Phoenix were copied on the letter. • Super Bowl XLIX Planning o During the Super Bowl, Valley Aviation Services will allow their shades to be utilized by current based open tie-down Aircraft. Owners will be encouraged to move their aircraft into this area. There will be a cost to the Airport for the use of the VAS shades; however, this 3 will be offset by the Remain Overnight (RON) fees collected during the Super Bowl and other Bowl games. The open tie-down space will be needed for visiting aircraft during the games and also for the ramp construction. Today, Mr. Fix sent an email to all open tie- down users regarding the issue. Airport staff will assign the temporary spaces. o Committee meeting: On November 25th, Mr. Chris Kessler will hold the final FAA meeting with Airport tenants from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. All are invited. Discussion will be held regarding the PPR system for the Super Bowl. o The operations plan for pilots during the Super Bowl, Fiesta Bowl and Pro Bowl is on the Airport website. This includes information on the PPR, TFR and other important information. • Wildlife Hazard Assessment o Mr. Fix met with representatives from Mead & Hunt Consulting Services who are the environmental biologists contracted by ADOT Aeronautics to conduct a Wildlife Hazard Assessment at every reliever airport in the valley. This year-long project will include observation of animal activity, such as birds and coyotes, near the Airport. The Airport has not had any significant bird strikes but has had a few minor incidents. Staff must keep a log of any bird strikes at the Airport and incidents must be reported to the FAA immediately. • Air Traffic Operations/Instrument Flight Procedures Production/Based Aircraft o Mr. Fix distributed quarterly figures for based aircraft from January 2010 to date, with an average of 280 per quarter over the nearly five year period. Mr. Fix commented that operations were down significantly during September compared to last year. Mr. Fix will email details to the Commissioners. Mr. Fix added that operations are down 21% year-to- date compared to the same time period last year. Mr. Fix attributes the decrease to the loss of Trans Pac and the increasing costs of general aviation. Mr. Fix noted that operations at the Goodyear Airport are also down from last year due to the loss of the Oxford Flight School. Mr. Fix stressed that flight schools are very important to operations and noted that at valley general aviation airports, based aircraft other than flight schools only comprise a small percentage of operations. Commissioner Mascaro asked if the City or the Airport has a specific staff member dedicated to developing business at the Airport. Commissioner Mascaro commented that the Scottsdale Airport has such a person. Mr. Fix replied that there is no staff member at the Airport dedicated to the task; however, there is marketing and development staff at the City who work with the Airport when opportunities arise. Mr. Fix explained that the City is not permitted to market to large flight schools due to the Part 150 Study and residential encroachment. Mr. Fix clarified that the Airport is allowed to accept small or large flight schools if approached. Mr. Fix announced that tomorrow, the IFR Departure Procedures for Runway 19 will be formally published. Mr. Fix stated that this is significant for jets coming in and out of the Airport on a regular basis and especially for the Super Bowl. VI. CALL TO THE PUBLIC No comments. VII. NEW BUSINESS REQUESTS (Future Agenda Items) Commissioner Tolby stated that he will submit his suggestions to Mr. Fix at a later time. VIII. NEXT MEETING TIME 4 The next meeting will be held at 6:00 p.m. on the second floor Conference Room of the Airport terminal building on Wednesday, December 10, 2014. IX. COMMISSION COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS Chair Rogen commented that she was very appreciative to be on the Commission. Chair Rogen stated that the Airport has gone through various challenges in the past, but is doing many things right as well. Chair Rogen hopes to see further development of the Airport via partnerships with businesses. Commissioner Tolby felt that the Commission has been ineffective over the past few years and would like to have an in-depth discussion during a future meeting regarding the roles and responsibilities of the Commission. Commissioner Tolby would like to study the current ordinance regarding the Commission. Commissioner Tolby would like to see increased communication between the Commission and the Airport users. Mr. Fix announced that Commissioner Tolby has been appointed as the next Chair and Commissioner Escudero will be the Vice Chair. Mr. Fix stated that there will also be three open positions beginning next month to be filled. X. ADJOURNMENT Meeting adjourned by consensus at 7:56 p.m. The Aviation Advisory Commission Meeting Minutes of November 12, 2014 were approved at the Commission Meeting of December 10, 2014. "I/ * &Nit Walter L. Fix, A. .E. Airport Administrator 623-930-2188 5