"Virginia airport unwilling to wait"

Sunday, June 15, 2003

Airport unwilling to wait
By David Lerman
The Hampton Roads (VA) Daily Press


WASHINGTON -- Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport could get a
new chance to win federal grants under a provision that passed the Senate
last week.

Buried in the fine print of a three-year, $43.5 billion bill for the Federal
Aviation Administration was an amendment by Sen. George Allen, R-Va., aimed
at helping the Peninsula airport.

The airport, saddled with a $7 million debt for the construction of its new
terminal, won permission in the early 1990s to use federal grant money to
pay it off.

But as part of the agreement with the FAA, the airport is prohibited from
seeking new federal grants for three years once the debt is paid off.

The three-year clock has started ticking, because the debt was fully paid
several weeks ago, said James Smith, executive director of the Peninsula
Airport Commission.

Hoping to avoid a three-year wait, the airport turned to Allen for help.

Allen's amendment would shorten the wait to a single year. The provision is
part of the FAA bill that cleared the Senate on Thursday. But the House
version of the bill does not contain the amendment.

Supporters are working to retain the provision when House and Senate
negotiators draft a final compromise bill in coming weeks.

Smith, who has headed the local airport since 1992, said a three-year freeze
on federal grants is no longer justified. A huge growth in passenger
traffic, he said, demands some major airport improvements.

Through the 1990s, he said, passenger traffic grew at twice the national
average. The airport is expected to serve 700,000 passengers this year, up
from about 640,000 last year.

Among the improvements to be requested: $3 million for a new baggage claim
facility, $500,000 for a new loading ramp and possibly a new concourse,
worth $6 million to $9 million.

 Do you have an opinion about this story?
Share it with other readers in our CAA Discussion Forums

http://www.californiaaviation.org/dc/dcboard.php

*****************************************