SLO County Supervisors

County supervisors back airport growth, despite two airlines pulling out

County leaders voice frustration at the two airlines that plan to discontinue local service and say the airport’s planned expansion should proceed

By Bob Cuddy

The Board of Supervisors voiced strong support Tuesday for airport expansion, as both it and members of the business community directed angry comments at two airlines for pulling out of the county airport.

“Shame on them!” Supervisor Katcho Achadjian said of Delta Connection and American Eagle, both of which will leave the San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport later this year.

Airlines nationally have been cutting services because of high fuel prices.

Achadjian said county leaders should be aggressive in seeking replacements and that the county should not let “an airline or two move us backward.”

He also said the county must not back away from a planned expansion of the airport.

The county already has extended an 800-foot runway and had been looking toward construction of a new parking structure and a 50,000-square-foot, two-story terminal.

The new terminal would have 42,000 more square feet than its predecessor, including a 4,000-square-foot lobby, more ticket counters, administrative offices within the terminal on the second floor, and a dramatically larger passenger holding area, behind the security line, that would offer food, magazines, coffee and other sundries.

The terminal would have seven gates and ramps leading to planes and a baggage claim area nearly four times bigger than the current space, with two baggage carousels and a separate place to handle oversized bags, said county Airport Manager Klaasje Nairne.

Achadjian’s sentiment was shared by many members of the business community who were on hand Tuesday.

Ron Yukelson, a spokesman for Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center in San Luis Obispo, described himself as a frustrated traveler and said the airport is vital to the county’s business community.

“Continue to fund and expand (it),” he urged the board.

Speakers also took jabs at Bill Watkins, executive director of the UCSB Economic Forecast Project.

Watkins wrote a piece on the Voices page of the July 18 edition of The Tribune suggesting that Santa Maria Public Airport be the Central Coast’s commercial regional airport.

Supervisor Jerry Lenthall said Watkins “missed the mark,” adding “so goes your regional airport, so goes your economy.”

Nairne said she doubts the federal government feels as Watkins does, or it would not have subsidized $42 million into the planned expansion.

Supervisors made no formal decisions Tuesday on the new terminal or parking garage. They have suspended work on both as airport officials assess the situation. The board has set a Sept. 9 meeting to hear alternatives.

Airport officials will study likely trends in the air transportation industry and design various scenarios, according to General Services Director Janette Pell.

In a report to supervisors, Pell stressed that the San Luis Obispo airport is financially sound and “a viable and vital business operation.”

However, she added, there could be a drop of as much as 5 percent in revenues in the wake of Delta and American Eagle pulling out.

The drop could affect expansion plans. Although 95 percent of the money for capital improvement projects is from federal grants, the other 5 percent comes from money paid by airlines on each ticket purchase.

The airport had its best year in 2007, with 360,000 passengers, according to Assistant Airport Manager Craig Piper.

This year, the numbers for the first five months show a 3 percent decline compared with the same period last year, he added.