HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-16-2009 Airport Commission Meeting Minutes MINUTES FINAL
Iowa City Airport Commission
April 16,2009
Iowa City Airport Terminal—6:00 PM
Members Present: Greg Farris, Minnetta Gardinier, Howard Horan, Janelle Rettig,
John Staley
Staff Present: Sue Dulek,Michael Tharp, Sarah Holecek
Others Present: David Hughes,Jay Honeck, Rex Brandstatter,Doug Moore, Larry
Bell, John Yeomans, Peggy Slaughter
RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL: None
DETERMINE QUORUM:
Chairperson Rettig called the meeting to order at 6:00 P.M. Rettig noted that Sarah
Holecek is present at tonight's meeting, from the City Attorney's office,filling in for Sue
Dulek.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM THE MARCH 12,APRIL 2,AND APRIL 14,
2009 MEETINGS:
Rettig asked if anyone had any changes to the March 12 minutes. Staley moved to
approve the minutes of the March 12,2009 meeting as submitted; seconded by
Farris. Carried 4-0(Gardinier absent).
Rettig asked if anyone had any changes to the April 2 minutes. Farris moved to
approve the minutes of the April 2,2009 meeting as submitted; seconded by Horan.
Carried 5-0.
Rettig then asked if anyone had any changes to the April 14 minutes. Farris moved to
approve the minutes of the April 14,2009 meeting as submitted; seconded by Rettig.
Carried 5-0.
PUBLIC DISCUSSION:
None.
ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION/ACTION:
a. Aviation Commerce Park/U of I Aircare Facility- (Staley recused himself as
an Airport Commission Member and participated in this discussion as a UIHC
employee.)
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Staley noted that they met on March 26 and are moving ahead. They first
need to obtain two independent appraisals, and have commissioned two firms
to do these appraisals. They hope to have this done in the next week or so.
Peggy Slaughter noted that one of the firms contacted her today. Slaughter
noted some other opportunities,one being a group from Waterloo who is
interested in the Aviation Commerce Park lots. She continued, giving the
Members a quick update on some of the other interested parties. Slaughter
asked if anyone knows the timeframe for the new Wal-Mart store. Tharp
noted that the Staples store has to be completed first,and that it's due to be
open in August or September. Slaughter also noted that they have the listings
for the Aviation Commerce Park on www.loopnet.com-a service that "loops"
you back to their web site.
b. Gilbert Street Land Parcel - Tharp noted that representatives are not present
this evening, and that he has not heard anything further from them. Staley
moved that they defer this item until the party's arrival; seconded by
Farris. Carried 5-0.
c. Private Hangar Construction-Doug Moore-Tharp noted that be spoke to
Doug Moore recently. Moore is still gathering information for his proposal.
Horan stated that he wanted to make a comment for the record-he believes
they need to make it very clear that any sort of reclamation or salvage
operation will not be left outside. He believes this is important in considering
Moore's proposal. Tharp noted that he has received the same comment from
others. Farris asked what zoning considerations would come into play in a
situation like this. Tharp noted that the Airport has its own Zoning Board.
Holecek responded to the Members' discussion, noting how overlay zoning
would come into play here. Horan stated that he would make the motion, if
need be,that they do not allow the Airport to become a'junkyard,"that there
should be no evidence outside of the hangar that there is a salvage operation
there. Rettig noted that instead of a formal motion this should be a consensus
of the Airport Commission that they are directing Tharp to continue the
negotiations with Mr. Moore,keeping in mind that should this come to
fruition,there will be nothing outside of the hangar in the form of a salvage
operation.
d. Farmer's National/Merschman Seeds-John Yeomans spoke to the
Commission concerning Merschman Seeds. He stated that they are interested
in extending their lease with the Airport. Rettig noted that the current lease
expires in February of 2010. He added that Merschman Seeds would like to
do some beautification of the area,and in return for taking care of this project,
they would like to be able to count on being at the Airport for the next few
years. The discussion turned to the impact of the runway closures this season,
and Yeomans noted that Merschman is aware of this. Rettig asked Yeomans
how the agricultural seed business is doing, and he gave a brief rundown of
tightening margins and struggles with prices. He added that the ethanol
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business has basically imploded, and that things have changed dramatically
over the past year. The discussion turned to lease rates,and Yeomans noted
that most are staying at the same rates. Members discussed this briefly with
him. Horan noted that a two-year lease would most likely not interfere with
any of the Airport's plans, and others agreed with him. Tharp noted that the
next thing that would interfere with this area is the perimeter road project, and
that is slated for October of 2012. Members then discussed the amount of the
current contract- $25,000 -with Tharp explaining how Farmer's National gets
a small portion of this for management of Merschman Seeds. Farris stated
that he sees no problem in a two-year lease,and Rettig agreed, adding that
they need to make sure that the problems seen last year-a gate left open and
banners that were left hanging-are addressed ahead of time so that this does
not occur again. Members agreed that Dulek would need to review this lease,
and that they are interested in pursuing another two years. The discussion
moved back to the beautification project that Merschman Seeds is proposing,
with Yeomans clarifying what is intended. Holecek noted that they could
enter into a Temporary Use of Right-of-Way agreement,which would allow
Merschman to use the right-of-way,but contains an indemnification provision
in case anything would happen. The topic moved back to what the Airport is
charging in this land lease with Merschman Seeds. Yeomans responded to
Members'questions regarding the current market price for this type of
contract. There was a consensus among the Members to move forward with
another two-year lease with Farmer's National and Merschman Seeds.
e. FAA/IDOT Projects—AECOM—David Hughes
i. Runways 7/25 & 12/30 -Hughes stated that they have been quite
busy since the last meeting. There is a pre-bid conference next
Tuesday afternoon at 1:30. The bids are due the 29th of this
month,and Hughes stated that they plan to have the grant
application back to the FAA the following day then. Hughes
continued, stating that the phasing plans are set up per some of the
previous discussions regarding this. He added that the Airport
would not be closed between July 24th and August 3rd,and also
August 29th and 30th. The intersection closure has been set for a
28-day calendar period, according to Hughes, and hopefully the
weather will cooperate. Gardinier asked for some clarification on
the various phases, and Hughes responded. Hughes noted that he
should have a better idea of closure dates once they have the pre-
construction conference. It was noted too, for clarification,that the
Airport itself will not be closed-the runways will be closed-
during the upcoming construction period.
1. Consider Resolution#A09-06 Accepting Work for Runway
7-25 Extension(Phase 5) Paving and Lighting-Hughes
noted that the project ended up about$7,000 under the initial
construction cost. Farris moved Resolution#A09-07;
seconded by Horan. Carried 5-0.
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ii. South Aviation Development Study—Hughes noted that they did
receive comments back from the FAA. The good news is that the
FAA is going to treat the South Aviation Development Study as a
stand-alone document,which means they do not have to wait for
approval on the Airport Layout Plan documents. The bad news,
according to Hughes, is that he has been so busy that he has not
been able to return this document to the FAA yet. He hopes to get
this out early next week. Tharp noted that once the approved
documents are returned, they would need to set up a joint meeting
with the City Council to present this.
iii. 2008 Pavement Rehab(North Taxilanes)—Hughes stated that they
have not talked to Felling yet,but plan to call in the next few
weeks to get them back for the needed repairs.
iv. Obstruction Mitigation—Hughes asked Tharp if he had received a
bill from Mediacom on this. Tharp stated that he had not. Hughes
added that they are still trying to complete the United hangar
demolition paperwork, as well. Rettig noted that the land around
the fence area looks like it is settling,and Hughes stated that he
would look at this area to see what is happening.
v. Building H—University of Iowa Hangar Expansion—Tharp noted
that they ran into some preliminary problems regarding the
location of underground utilities, and he briefly filled Members in
on this.
vi. FY2010 State Aviation Program Grant Application-Hughes
explained the four projects that make up this application-the
drainage for Hangar A, overlay taxiway leading to runway 2-5,
south area pavement maintenance, and pavement maintenance in
front of the main terminal building and along the taxiway. Hughes
added that they will have to see what the State is willing to fund-
it could be just two,it could be all four. Hughes continued to
respond to Members' questions as they reviewed the upcoming
years'projects. Farris moved to approve the FY2010 State
Aviation Grant application; seconded by Staley. Carried 5-0.
b. Larry Bell, owner of the property,and Rex Brandstatter joined the Airport
Commission meeting at this time. Brandstatter addressed the Members,
stating that he hoped everyone had had a chance to review his letter. He noted
that the details not addressed in the letter include the length of a lease and any
specifics that City code would dictate. Horan asked what type of term they
are interested in, and Brandstatter responded that probably something in the
20 to 25 year range,being renewable upon review. Tharp stated that he did
some of his own research, and found that$300 a month is a very fair rate. As
for the length of the lease,Tharp recommended doing five-year increments,
on a 20-year lease, with a CPI inflator every five years. Tharp added that the
best use for this piece of property would be something like this proposal.
Horan added that he believes they should make it a"floor of$300" in case the
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CPI inflator would not go up. Dulek added that they will need to have a
public hearing, first of all, and that she and Tharp can work on a lease
agreement for the Commission to review. Bell added that his concern is
putting$25,000 to $40,000 into something like this and then not having it be
feasible after a five-year period. Members continued to discuss this proposal,
with unanimous agreement that Dulek and Tharp will begin working on a
lease proposal. This led the Commission to discuss when they would need to
hold the public hearing. Rettig suggested May 12th at 7:30 A.M.,and others
agreed.
f. Airport"Operations;" Strategic Plan-Implementation; Budget;Management—
Tharp began the discussion, stating that the big issue is the City's budget
shortfall. This has led to all departments being asked to cut their budgets for
fiscal year 2010 and beyond. Tharp continued, stating that he has a memo
from the City Manager's office asking for various scenarios, such as 1, 2, and
4%reductions in General Fund budget appropriations. Tharp stated that he
believes they will be able to absorb any of the proposed cuts. He added that
he would like to have the authority to go ahead and work on this. Members
began to discuss this issue,with Tharp responding to questions on what his
proposals will be. Staley stated that he could be comfortable with Tharp
working on this with the Chair, and others agreed. Rettig then noted that on
page 7 there is a line charge for the position of the Economic Development
person. She added that she believes this charge should be brought up in light
of budget cuts. Farris noted that this has been brought up yearly and that
nothing has changed thus far. The discussion turned to some of the items that
need attention at the Airport. Tharp noted that the boiler needs to be repaired,
in addition to some other items. He stated that he would like to review the
capital funds of approximately$70,000 in order to cover these items. Another
item is an asphalt overlay of the area at the front of the terminal,which Tharp
expects to use a big chunk of these funds. Repairing the back door at the
terminal and purchasing paint are the other items that Tharp would like to
cover with these funds. Staley moved to authorize Tharp,with approval of
the Chair, to use capital funds to cover the boiler repair,asphalt overlay,
door repair, and paint purchase,as discussed above; Horan seconded.
Carried 5-0. Rettig then asked if Tharp believes the transition to having Jet
Air do the maintenance is working. He responded that after some initial
bumps in the road things appear to be working out. The discussion continued,
with Members discussing the possible need of a checklist of sorts to make
sure the maintenance is kept up in crucial areas. As for the cleaning portion of
the contract,Tharp noted that this has improved. The discussion then turned
to the strategic plan. Staley noted that he met with Rettig and Tharp to lay out
a timeline to get this plan going. They are planning on it going into effect in
July of 2010. Farris suggested they be proactive in the sense that they look at
how the Airport can trim the budget, as the City has asked, over a longer time
period. Rettig added that the meetings for the strategic planning would start
this fall. Rettig then noted that Jet Air's attorney contacted Dulek regarding
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an FBO management agreement reduction of fees of 50%during the time that
the runways are closed. Farris then noted what the Airport pays Jet Air for
both cleaning and maintenance each month. This led to a brief discussion
among Members,with Rettig stating that she believes this closure is
unfortunate but that everyone involved will benefit from this project once it is
completed. The Commission Members agreed unanimously that they do not
feel the Airport should grant a fee reduction to Jet Air. Gardinier then spoke
as a member of the public regarding this issue, stating that it is a bit
disingenuous to view the hangars as solely storage space for airplanes without
having any expectation that individuals would need runway access. She
added that she did some looking around and found a State of Wisconsin
Department of Transportation document used for leases, and this document
does state that if runways are closed, the lessee will be given credit for the
time they are unable to utilize the runways.
g. Airport Commission Bylaws-Rettig noted that Members received a memo
from Dulek regarding changes to the Airport Commission's bylaws,one being
a change from 6-year terms to 4-year terms; the next is to change the "Vice
Chairperson" position to "Secretary"; and third would be to delete the
requirement that the Vice Chairperson must certify bills for approval. Staley
moved to approve the changes to the Airport Commission Bylaws as
discussed, seconded by Horan. Carried 5-0. Dulek noted that she will get
copies of the revised bylaws to Members once this is updated.
h. FBO Staff Report-Rettig noted that she had a message from Jet Air,noting
that due to a funeral and travel,no one would be available at tonight's
meeting.
i. Subcommittees' Reports—Rettig noted that they need another Member for the
Budget Subcommittee,now that Hartwig has left. Farris stated that he would
serve, and others agreed to this. Farris then spoke to Members about the
viewing area and the upcoming plans for this season. Rettig noted that they
need to put some concrete stops in so cars are not parked on the sidewalk area
here, as it makes the sidewalk hard to use. She also noted that the last parking
spot was where they were going to put the bike rack that has still not been
installed. She asked that these two items be part of the viewing area tasks,
and that they address them this year.
j. Commission Members' Reports—Horan brought up the issue of a grant
summary, and asked if Tharp could prepare such a document. He believes
this will be a valuable tool for the Airport. Rettig reminded everyone that
Tharp is working on a newsletter and the next one is due out the first part of
May,in case anyone has something to add to this next issue. Gardinier asked
if the newsletter comes out regularly, and Tharp noted that it was supposed to
be quarterly,but that this does not always happen. Rettig noted that it would
be helpful to have a"communications intern" to help with some of these new
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avenues, such as Twitter, Facebook, and the web page. Gardinier asked if
anyone had checked with the University on the possibility of graduate
students fulfilling such a need. Members agreed that this would be a good
idea and would be worth looking into.
k. Staff Report—Tharp reminded the Members that next week is the Aviation
Conference, Wednesday and Thursday. Gardinier stated that she will be there
on Wednesday.
SET NEXT REGULAR MEETING: Thursday, May 21, 2009 at 6:00 P.M. A special
meeting will be held May 12,2009 at 7:30 A.M.
ADJOURN: The meeting adjourned at 8:31 P.M. Moved by Horan to adjourn,
seconded by Farris. Carried 5-0.
hia LA,
CHAIRPERSON D TE
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Airport Commission
ATTENDANCE RECORD
YEAR 2009
(Meeting Dates)
TERM 1/8 2/5 2/12 3/12 4/2 4/14 4/16 5/12 5/21
NAME EXP.
Greg Farris 3/1/13 X X X X X X X
Minnetta 3/1/15 — — — X X X X
Gardinier
Howard Horan 3/1/14 X X X X X O/E X
Janelle Rettig 3/1/12 X O/E X X X X X
John Staley 3/1/10 X O/E X X O/E O/E X
KEY: X = Present
O = Absent
O/E= Absent/Excused
NM= No meeting
— = Not a Member
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