"Airport growth affects you"

Wednesday, May 24, 2006

Opinion
Airport growth affects you 
By Paul Maryniak
The Arizona Republic


We're giving you something special on our Opinions pages today and all
through the week: A glimpse of one of this region's potential powerhouses.

I say "potential" because Williams Gateway hasn't realized the economic
ambitions officials in these parts have projected for years. But now more
than ever, it stands on the brink of realizing them.

So we sent editorial writer Joanna Hensley out to Southern California to
check out Ontario International Airport, a hub for the Los Angeles area that
sees jets taking off for a number of domestic and international destinations
every day. 

The airport has grown considerably since its use in World War II for fighter
planes and military cargo and now feeds the region with billions of dollars
annually. It is described as responsible for close to 6,000 jobs.

Williams Gateway, also a vital contributor in the 1940s to our national
defense by supplying something like a quarter of all Air Force pilots
through its training center, also has the potential to pump billions into
the Valley, especially its southeastern quadrant.

So it's no wonder why we think this is a major story, perhaps one of the
most important for the region in the next 10 years.

Williams Gateway has been on our radar for a long time on both our Opinions
and news pages.

And while you can expect that the Arizona Republic will be covering it
intensively in its pages, you can also expect The Tempe Republic to be
providing additional coverage that might not necessarily make the pages of
the main paper.

That's because we recognize that the airport has a special significance to
the Southeast Valley.

If Williams Gateway finally achieves the dream many have had for it, the
companies and jobs it attracts will almost certainly have a more direct
impact on the Southeast Valley than anywhere else.

Add to that the fact that many residents might one day find it a more
convenient place to use than Sky Harbor, and it's difficult to think what
ongoing project has more significance in this region. 

Tempe residents likely won't be making the trek out to Williams Gateway, but
they might appreciate a reduction of traffic to Sky Harbor that a more
vibrant hub airport might provide.

Joanna's series this week represents another big step on our part to keeping
you posted on the airport's development plans, but it's by no means the only
special effort you can expect to see in your community newspaper.

Keep reading The Tempe Republic not only for our consistent coverage of one
of the Southeast Valley's biggest stories this decade, but also for special
projects that will drive home just how important the airport is to our
collective future.

I see us growing right along with that airport.

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Share it with other readers in our CAA Discussion Forums

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


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