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Home My WebLink About07-16-2015 Airport Commission Meeting Minutes Airport Commission July 16,2015 Page 1 MINUTES FINAL IOWA CITY AIRPORT COMMISSION JULY 16, 2015—6:00 P.M. AIRPORT TERMINAL BUILDING Members Present: Jose Assouline, Minnetta Gardinier, Chris Ogren Members Absent: David Davis, A. Jacob Odgaard Staff Present: Michael Tharp, Sue Dulek Others Present: Matt Wolford, Melissa Underwood, Dan Auspurger, Carl Byers, Ron Roetzel, Matt Wilke, Carol Freeman RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL: (to become effective only after separate Council action): None. DETERMINE QUORUM: Chairperson Gardinier called the meeting to order at 6:05 P.M. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Minutes from the June 25, 2015, meeting were reviewed. Ogren noted that the minutes state that Chairperson Gardinier called the meeting to order; however, she was not present at this meeting. This should say Odgaard instead. Also noted were a few grammatical errors that Ogren will show to Tharp. Ogren moved to accept the minutes of the June 25, 2015, meeting as amended per the discussion. Assouline seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. Ogren then asked about the absence and absence excused. She questioned the use of absence excused for those members who do not show up at meetings, without any prior notification of such. Tharp will check into this issue. Members briefly discussed this issue, asking if there is some type of policy concerning members missing too many meetings without any reason given. Dulek will check into this matter for the Commission. Gardinier suggested they add this topic to next month's meeting, so that they can better understand how they might handle the issue. PUBLIC DISCUSSION: Dan Auspurger addressed the Commission, noting that he was a pilot for Jet Air in 2007, and he noted that he has started a business involving a quad-copter. He further explained what he is doing with this type of aircraft and responded to Member questions. Auspurger noted that the FAA requires a letter from the Airport Commission in order for him to fly within the two-mile radius around the Airport. He wanted to bring this issue to the Commission's agenda,so that they can perhaps discuss it at a future meeting. Tharp stated that they really do need to watch how much they discuss of this issue, and he suggested that they add this to next month's Airport Commission July 16,2015 Page 2 agenda for further discussion. Assouline suggested they also get the FAA's opinion on this issue, as it is a no-fly zone basically. ITEMS FOR DISCUSSIONIACTION: a. Airport Master Plan—Melissa Underwood gave Members an update on the Master Plan process, noting that they recently held their fifth Advisory Group meeting. At this meeting they looked at such issues as apron size, hangar needs, tie-down space, etc., and very briefly touched on possible alternatives. After they share this information with the Commission, Underwood noted that they will begin work on the Implementation Plan portion. Gardinier asked Underwood if she had anything she could share with the group, and Underwood showed the group a drawing from the 3D web application. Members commented on the various components, with Underwood noting how much room the area in question has for the Airport's expansion in years to come. Tharp also spoke to long-term needs and how the Airport might best find ways to increase revenue for them. b. FAA/IDOT Projects: AECOM (David Hughes)—Tharp then introduced Matt Wilke and Carol Freeman with AECOM. He briefly explained what their participation has been in the Master Plan process. FY15 Obstruction Mitigation— Underwood addressed the Members, stating that now that Quantum has completed the air space survey they need to decide what obstruction mitigation items to focus on now and what items can be pushed out to other years. Continuing, Underwood noted that the proposed trees in the obstruction mitigation plan are part of tonight's meeting packet. She added that they would like to get the Commission's opinion on this plan. Underwood gave Members a brief description of how Quantum collected this data and what they then did with it in terms of narrowing down priorities for the mitigation plan. She then pointed out the 22 tree obstructions that the FAA say are causing the circling approach to be off at night. AECOM then verified these 22 noted obstructions and the list dropped to nine. These nine are on the 12-30 runway only, according to Underwood. Referring to the handouts, Underwood started to review the identified trees in this and previous studies. She further explained the priority system used in their review. Continuing, Underwood responded to Member questions regarding what options they have in mitigating these obstructions. She stated that they can either remove the obstructions or try to light the obstructions. She also noted the pros and cons of each. Members discussed their options, speaking to property acquisition and good neighbor policies in these types of situations. Underwood clarified what the 'lighting' refers to, that you can often use existing light poles in the neighborhood to address this type of situation. It was noted that this type of lighting can be seen on Benton Street. Members then asked questions regarding their options. Carol Freeman of AECOM then responded to questions regarding how they might move forward with this. She stated that first they would consider putting lights up, then topping trees, and then taking trees to the Airport Commission July 16,2015 Page 3 ground. She explained how this process would typically play out, noting that alternatives would need to be ironed out first. Gardinier asked what 'topping' is exactly, and Tharp responded to this. Matt Wilke of AECOM also responded to Member questions, noting how the FAA typically handles these tree obstruction situations and who has what responsibility. Gardinier asked why they would go through this process if they are going to put up lighting where possible anyway. Tharp noted that you need to have several options, and Underwood noted what processes they have to go through for the funding, no matter what they end up doing. Tharp also clarified for Members how the grant funding works for these types of projects. Members agreed that they would like to prioritize these nine obstructions that are keeping the circling approach turned off at night. ii. Fuel Tank Rehabilitation—Tharp stated that they are still planning on an August 3'd start date. Ogren asked if tenants had been notified, and Tharp responded that everyone had. iii. North T-hangar Electrical Service & LED lighting —Tharp stated that the new LED lights are up. This project is now winding down. Gardinier asked Tharp to briefly comment on the grant funding. He noted that they did get approval for the apron extension project. The other two projects, however, were not funded. Tharp further clarified the process that will take place before this can move forward, most likely next year. c. Airport Operations— i. Strategic Plan-Implementation—Tharp stated that they are still awaiting the Master Plan, but should have a better idea of where to move forward in the coming months. ii. Budget—Tharp noted that July began the new fiscal year. This means the budget conversations will start again in October for the next fiscal year. iii. Management None. d. FBO/Flight Training Reports i. Jet Air— Matt Wolford of Jet Air shared the monthly maintenance reports with Members. He spoke to some of the various issues they had to deal with, especially lighting issues. July saw more of the same with mowing and weeding, and trimming of the bushes in front of the terminal building. As for Jet Air's business, Wolford stated that they have been busy with charters. The shop is keeping busy, as well, as is the flight training. e. Commission Members' Reports—Ogren stated that they will be driving up to Oshkosh this coming weekend. Gardinier stated that the wax job Jet Air did really helped her complete the Air Race Classic this year. She finished in 12th place out of 49 planes. She added that she will also be attending Oshkosh this weekend. f. Staff Report—Tharp stated that next weekend is Fly Iowa in Mason City. He hopes to attend on Saturday. Sertoma is August 30th. Ogren stated that someone told her the Airport web cam is down. Tharp explained Airport Commission July 16, 2015 Page 4 where this can be accessed. Ogren also spoke to the new web site and the difficulty in finding things. SET NEXT REGULAR MEETING FOR: The next regular meeting of the Airport Commission will be held on Thursday, August 20, 2015, at 6:00 P.M. in the Airport Terminal Building. ADJOURN: Ogren moved to adjourn the meeting at 7:18 P.M. Gardinier seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. /0 oPy 2,Q1 CHAIRPERSON DATE Airport Commission July 16,2015 Page 5 Airport Commission ATTENDANCE RECORD 2015 TERM o o �o ao a o o 1 o + O W N N + N NAME EXP. m -m O - tri a' O 0 0 0 o N o o N N Minnetta 03/01/19 X X X X X X 0/ X Gardinier E Jose 03/01/16 0/ X X 0/ X X XX Assouline E E Chris 03/01/18 X X X X X X XX Ogren A.Jacob 03/01/18 X X X X X X X 0/ Odgaard E David 03/01/17 X 0/ X X 0/ X 0/ 0/ Davis E E E E Key: X = Present X/E = Present for Part of Meeting 0 = Absent O/E =Absent/Excused NM = Not a Member at this time