"Perspectives on South Florida's Airports"

Saturday, June 12, 2004

Opinion
PERSPECTIVES ON SOUTH FLORIDA'S AIRPORTS
The Miami (FL) Herald


Broward County commissioners are continuing their nine-year effort to
get an acceptable Environmental Impact Statement to stretch and slope
the south runway at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.
Last December they decided to proceed concurrently with a shorter,
sloped alternative that would be less damaging to eastern wetlands.

The new alternative runway would be a sloped 8,200-foot stretch, which
compares to the existing main runway's flat 9,000 feet. It would also be
graded to a height of nearly 50 feet at its eastern end to span the
railroad tracks and U.S. 1. The County Commission has asked the
airport's airline tenants to pay for homeowners' mitigation above what
the federal government will cover. Consultants told the airlines this
could cost $85 million and that this is a conservative, if not
unrealistic, figure.

The airlines had a tepid response to the runway's ''footprint'' plan.
Their response to the request for mitigation costs has been
noncommittal.

The airport's management continues using passenger increases as the
basis for needing additional runway capacity. Passenger numbers are the
basis to increase parking facilities and water fountains. The only
reason to increase runway capacity is runway usage. The 2003 runway use
was just 5.3 percent over use in the 1980s.

The airlines want a cost/benefit study of runway expansion. This is a
normal business procedure before any major decision. If the county
commissioners have convinced themselves that the baseless additional
runway capacity is needed, the airport management should explain to the
airlines that the ''footprint'' of a 9,000-foot flat north parallel
runway would be a twin to the existing main runway. Rather than the
limited usable length of a sloped south runway, its length would be
entirely usable. The twin runway would make use of the county's existing
transportation corridor, so mitigation would be minimal. The federal
government's contribution would cover the costs. No mitigation from the
airlines would be needed.

Although still of questionable need, the airlines might support a north
parallel runway, as could county taxpayers.

Fort Lauderdale

The Miami-Dade County Commission continues to find itself having to fend
off special-interest groups intent on grabbing from the commission
powers and responsibilities expressly given to us by the county's
home-rule charter.

Our charter states that the commission shall, ``Provide and operate air,
water, rail and bus terminals, port facilities, and transportation
systems.''

Our charter does not delegate the running of Miami International Airport
to any unelected, unaccountable authority. It mandates that the airport
be run by the elected commissioners who are directly accountable to the
people of Miami-Dade. Unlike authority members, commissioners can be
voted out of office if we aren't doing our jobs.

For those who think that an authority is a magic solution to improve the
airport look no further than a Herald article that featured a survey by
Conde Nast Traveler Magazine. The survey found that of the 10
worst-rated airports in the country, nine are run by authorities.

Those who would suggest that MIA is not showing signs of improvement
under the commission are wrong. At its peak, $2.6 billion worth of
construction was going on at MIA. It is said to have been the largest
construction project at an operating airport in aviation history.

We not only sited a fourth runway (look at the problems with proposed
new runways in Broward and other places), but we built it on time and
under budget.

Under the commission, the north terminal (which is five times the size
of the new Cesar Pelli-designed terminal at Reagan International in
Washington, D.C.) and the silver, wing-shaped south terminal building
that faces SR 836 are both well under construction. For some in the
business community to suggest that they can do a better job running the
airport in light of all of the problems that the corporate world is
having with accountability, ethics, corruption and criminal activity is
hypocritical.

The effort by a majority of the commission to fight this airport power
grab is not a measure of desperation, but rather the commission sending
the message that it will not be bullied by special-interest groups, no
matter who they may be.

DENNIS C. MOSS, county commissioner, District 9, Miami


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