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Home My WebLink About03-28-2007 Airport Commission Meeting Minutes MINUTES FINAL Iowa City Airport Commission March 28,2007 Iowa City Airport Terminal—5:45 PM Members Present: Howard Horan, Chair; Randy Hartwig; John Staley; Janelle Rettig Members Absent: Greg Farris Staff Present: Sue Dulek, Michael Tharp Others Present: Dean Thornberry, David Hughes,Jay Honeck, Mary Honeck, Phillip Woolford, Greg Zimmerman, John Yeomans DETERMINE QUORUM: Chairperson Horan called the meeting to order at 5:46 P.M. RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL: None ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION/ACTION: A. South Taxilanes—Plans, specifications, form of contract, and estimate on cost for the construction of"South Taxilane Rehabilitation." (1) Public Hearing—Chairperson Horan opened the public hearing. No one spoke at the public hearing. Chairperson Horan closed the public hearing. (2) Consider a Resolution accepting Plans, Specifications,Form of Contract, and Estimate on Cost for the Construction of"South Taxilane Rehabilitation"—Staley moved to consider Resolution #A07-04, accepting plans, specifications, form of contract, and estimate on cost for the construction of"South Taxilane Rehabilitation,"seconded by Rettig. Resolution carried 4-0. (Farris absent.) B. Hangar A—Plans,specifications,form of contract, and estimate on cost for the construction of"Hangar A Rehabilitation." (1) Public Hearing—Chairperson Horan opened the public hearing. No one spoke at the public hearing. Chairperson Horan closed the public hearing. (2) Consider a Resolution accepting Plans, Specifications,Form of Contract, and Estimate on Cost for the Construction of"Hangar A Rehabilitation"—Hartwig moved to consider Resolution#A07-05, accepting plans, specifications, form of contract, and estimate on cost for the construction of"Hangar A Rehabilitation,"seconded by Staley. Resolution carried 4-0. (Farris absent.) 1 Airport Commission March 28, 2007 Page 2 of 5 C. Hangar A& B—Access Door Replacement (1) Consider a Resolution Approving Replacement of Access Doors to T-Hangars A and B and Authorizing an Informal Bidding Process —Dulek explained the informal bidding process being used for this project. Rettig moved to consider Resolution#A07-06, approving replacement of access doors to T-hangars A and B and authorizing an informal bidding process; seconded by Staley. Resolution carried 4-0. (Farris absent.) D. Farmer's National (1) Consider a Resolution Granting Limited Power of Attorney to Farmers National Company with Respect to U.S. Department of Agriculture Programs—John Yeomans from Farmers was present to respond to Members' questions. Tharp explained what this Power of Attorney is for. Horan noted that this is not a change in anything that they have previously done in this area. The lease will be terminated on September 1,per Yeomans. Staley moved to consider Resolution #A07-07, granting limited Power of Attorney to farmers National Company with respect to U.S. Department of Agriculture programs; seconded by Hartwig. Resolution carried 4-0. (Farris absent.) E. Thornberry Hangar—Proposal by Dean Thornberry to Build a T-Hanger —Horan began the discussion by noting that Dean Thomberry would like to build a T-Hanger somewhere on the Airport property. He continued by asking if there is a clear need for this hangar to be built. Tharp stated that as far as people waiting for hangars, they have quite a few who are waiting for a space. Tharp gave Members a current waiting list. Dean Thomberry then joined the Members to further discuss his proposal. Tharp stated that he and Thomberry met recently to discuss this, and came up with a proposal of a block of ten hangars,to be built near the University's hangar. Tharp stated that currently this is the only area they could do this building in. Hartwig asked for David Hughes' opinion on this area. Horan stated that he spoke with Hughes earlier today regarding this proposal, and he shared his thoughts on specific areas for building. Thornberry stated that he is looking at spending about$400,000 to build this proposed hangar. He also stated that they would need to fill this area before they could begin construction. The discussion continued, with Thomberry stating how he would like to recoup his money for the proposed hangars. Rettig asked for some clarification on the proposed arrangement. Thomberry explained how the land needs to have a"fair market value" on it,that this project is a loan from him to the Airport, and that he would then recoup his money in a set number of years through monthly payments. Members then began discussing the various aspects of a project such as this, and how they would need to handle the various parts of it. (TAPE ENDS) The discussion turned to the expenses 2 • Airport Commission March 28,2007 Page 3 of 5 associated with building T-hangars, with Thornberry stating that the doors are the most expensive part of the construction process. The discussion turned to what type of loan this would be and what type of interest rate would be associated with it. Dulek responded to Members' legal questions regarding the proposed project by Thornberry. The discussion then turned to how a 300-foot building is configured for T- hangars. Members also gave their opinions on the various options available, with Chairperson Horan stating that he would like to get as far as possible with this decision at tonight's meeting. Hartwig suggested a subcommittee be formed to work on this. Rettig then asked Tharp for clarification on his proposed payback plan on Thornberry's proposed T-hangar project. Tharp explained how he laid out several options for this. Rettig stated that they do not currently charge enough rent to help retire Airport debt, and therefore, she feels the proposed plans would also not help retire Airport debt. Thornberry stated that he planned on putting in individual meters so tenants would pay their own utilities. The water would be the only Airport utility. Rettig stated that she feels the Airport may not be at the point to retire debt on a new hangar, until they have more property to sell so as to relieve some of their current debt. She further stated that the Airport's budget is stretched thin at this point, and she is not comfortable with taking on more debt at this time. Hartwig stated that he feels they should start out with what they truly want, and then they can work from there, once they know cost issues. Thomberry asked what they could charge for a large corporate hangar. Woolford stated that about$500 would be fair for a citation jet. Staley asked about a feasibility study being done on this project, stating that he thinks it would help to address all of the questions being raised. Horan stated that he would like to get some type of consensus from Members at this point. He stated that: 1) they would provide a 40-foot hangar for Dean Thornberry; 2) they want as few north-facing hangars as possible; 3) they want to maximize any remaining opportunities in the undeveloped space between the University hangar and the highway, keeping in mind that the University may become an even more important tenant. He asked if Members agreed at this point,to which they responded positively. Horan continued, stating that Rettig is correct about the budget and that if they can,they use rents to repay Thornberry's project. Tharp asked if they could do something in the range of a 10-unit T-hangar, with one square hangar on each end, leaving six hangars in the middle. This led back to the need for a feasibility study, with Staley asking Hughes if he had any idea what a study like this would cost. Horan stated that he feels if they are able to do this, they should definitely break ground this building season. He asked if Members are interested in forming a 3 Airport Commission March 28, 2007 Page 4 of 5 subcommittee, stating that he would like to see Rettig on the subcommittee. Hartwig stated that he would join this subcommittee with Rettig. (TAPE ENDS) It was decided that this item would be on the next meeting's agenda. The discussion continued,with various Members giving their fmal thoughts on this project. Horan restated again for the group what the subcommittee's task is: they are to understand the nature of the feasibility study that Earth Tech could perform, as well as cost for this study. Rettig asked if anyone else was attending the Iowa Aviation Conference next week. Horan stated that he plans on going for the day on Thursday. A brief discussion followed,with Rettig asking Dulek for clarification on several Members being present at such a conference. ADJOURN: Meeting adjourned at 6:55 P.M. y—/?— 0 7 Chairperson Date 4 Airport Commission March 28, 2007 Page 5 of 5 Airport Commission ATTENDANCE RECORD YEAR 2007 (Meeting Date) TERM 1/11 2/8 3/8 3/28 NAME EXP. Randy Hartwig 3/1/09 X X X X Greg Farris 3/1/07 O/E X X O/E John Staley 3/1/10 X X X X Howard Horan 3/1/08 X X X X Janelle Rettig 3/1/12 X X X X KEY: X = Present O = Absent O/E= Absent/Excused NM= No meeting --- = Not a Member 5