"Indianapolis Int'l Airport still feels negative impact of 9/11"

Friday, February 7, 2003

Airport still feels negative impact of 9/11
By Lisa Amin/Eyewitness News 
WTHR-TV, IN


Indianapolis, - The effects of September 11th can still be felt at
Indianapolis International Airport . The airport's 2003 budget is much
smaller, forcing financial directors to readjust their books. 

Airport personnel waited and waited for ridership to rise and sales to take
off. 2003 was supposed to be a rebound year for Indianapolis International.
Financial forecasters predicted more passengers in the terminals and an
$84-million budget for the year. 

But it turns out their numbers are off. According to the airport, they'll
lose about $4-million in revenue this year because fewer people than
expected are flying. The airport's Dennis Rosebrough says, "When you have
fewer people flying, you have fewer people parking, that's an example of a
direct impact." 

The airport's parking lots are its biggest money makers aside from the
airlines. 

Businesses like restaurants and stores rank behind parking for airport
revenue. Venessa Filion says fewer people are visiting her airport business.
"The airport has not been as busy as it was when I first got here," Filion
says. 

That was 7 months ago. Shop keepers hoped for a comeback, but with the
flying public still wary of the economy and the possibility of war, it may
be 2004 before business bounces back. 

The airport now has to reduce its spending by 5.5-percent. That could mean a
hiring freeze, or holding off on repairs and other projects.


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