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08-18-2011 APM+HUTCHINSON AIRPORT COMMISSION August 18, 2011 5:30 p.m. Airport Arrival/Departure Building Minutes Members present: Chuck Brill, Doug McGraw, Dick Freeman, Joel Schwarze, Juli Neubarth, Mayor Cook Members absent: None Others Present: John Olson, City of Hutchinson; Tom Parker, Hutchinson Aviation Meeting called to order at 5:30 p.m. There was a quorum of members present. 1. Approve July 21 Airport Commission Minutes Motion made by Freeman, second by McGraw to approve minutes. Unanimous approval 2. Airport Commission Chuck Brill (to 09/2011, second full-term) Dick Freeman (to 09/2012, first full-term) Juli Neuharth (to 09/2013, first full -term) Doug McGraw (to 09/2014, second full -term) Joel Schwarze (to 09/2015, first full-term) Steve Cook (Council representative) Commission meetings & interest forms for serving on the Commission are posted on the website www.ci.hutchinson.mn.us Mayor Cook indicated he had received an interest form from Ross Peterson to serve on the Airport Commission after Brill's term expires in September. The City Council will likely be able to act on filling Brill's position prior to the September meeting, when a new Commission Chair will be named. 3. Hangars There are currently four available open hangars, but City staff was in contact with a prospective tenant yesterday. It is anticipated that the tenant will be in one of the available hangars soon. 4. Operational Issues (Open Projects) a) AIP —Crack Repair Project —Update Olson reported that the City Council will consider a resolution to have Mayor Cook and City Administrator Carter serve as signatories on the federal grant documents. The project has been reviewed by Mn/DOT Aeronautics and is currently in process with FAA. FAA staff has a backlog of work as a result of the partial shut -down of their operations, but they are working hard to process the grants as quickly as they can. The project contractor is very familiar with airport work and the grant process. TKDA engineers and City staff are continuing to proceed with steps required for the project before construction begins, as they were originally scheduled. There is a high level of confidence that the grant will become available in the next few weeks. The grant is expected to be available prior to the initially stated FAA deadline of September 9. b) Airport Construction Fund Projects Olson reported that City staff had a question about the materials used in the roofing project approved for Hangar 42. The Airport Commission directed staff to put on a green roof, provided there is no up charge for the material. If the colored roof requires additional money, then the galvanized roof is adequate. 5. Other Discussions/ New Business a) LED airport lighting discussion Joel Schwarze reported that he has been in contact with a vendor that has provided LED lighting at airports in Canada with success. LED airfield lighting would potentially save significant amounts of utility charges at the Airport. Utilities account for about 30% of the airport's expenditures. The product representative was unable to attend tonight, but Joel will be in contact with him to see if it would be possible to meet with the Airport Commission at their next meeting, or at least meet with City staff prior to the next meeting. The Airport has been able to take steps to reduce utility costs in the recent past. Hutchinson Utilities Commission is now providing electricity to the airport, except for the southernmost hangars. Most recently, natural gas was brought to the airport to replace LP Gas, which has also resulted in cost savings. There were also discussions regarding hangar lighting, and Mayor Cook indicated that he had just learned of a company in Hibbing, MN that could possibly help with reducing costs for operating hangar lighting. b) Agricultural Lease Olson reported that Skyview Dairy had contacted him. Skyview is interested in a lease extension, as they indicated intent to plant alfalfa. There being only one year left on their contract, Skyview is looking for an extension to be assured they can fully utilize the alfalfa crop they plant. The Commission reiterated its stance that alfalfa is the crop of choice around the airfield, since very little debris is created. Future discussions with Skyview Dairy will include modification of the rent charge. c) Fly -in event — Jessica Miller Jessica Miller had contacted City staff and requested use of the airport for a fly -in event as a fundraiser in memory of Irene Lev for the benefit of her son and other future aviators. Jessica expressed her thanks for the Airport Commission considering this request and regretted she was unable to attend the Airport Commission meeting. The fly -in breakfast will be held from 8 a.m. to noon on Sunday September 25, 2011 and will feature pancakes and trimmings. Jessica has already made arrangements for use of airport facilities, pending approval of the fly -in by the Airport Commission. If anyone would like additional information, please contact Jessica Miller at (320) 296 -5200. A motion was made by Schwarze, second by McGraw to approve the fly -in event on September 25, 2011. d) Skydiving operations at the Airport A general discussion was held regarding future of skydiving operations at the airport. There has not been any requests to -date for future skydiving operations. The consensus was that any party requesting skydiving operations at the airport be directed to make contact with Tim and Rose Eakins to determine whether use of their facility is feasible before submitting any plans to use the airport directly. Of particular concern for skydiving operations at the airport were potential safety concerns related to the proximity of skydiving operations to those of Life Link III. Additional concerns were voiced related to the lack of adequate space to accommodate spectators and ground personnel. e) 2012 Budget Olson presented the currently proposed 2012 Airport budget. The budget highlights include: 1) Increased revenue from hangar rental beginning mid -year 2012, after Life Link III has reimbursed the City's Airport Construction fund as identified in their lease agreement. 2) After accounting for additional hangar rent, net airport expenditures are expected to be about 7% less than in 2011. 3) Of the $108,640 expenditures, the single largest item is for utilities, at $32,000 or about 30 %. Salaries and benefits represent about 12 %, with repairs and operating costs accounting for the remainder of the budget. Olson invited Commissioners to contact him if there were any questions about the budget. At 6:35, a motion to adjourn was made by Neuharth, second by Freeman. Unanimous approval. NEXT MEETING: Regularly scheduled meeting: 09/15/11.