Airport Authority

Athens Ben Epps Airport Authority Meeting February 22, 2022, 3:00PM Live Stream on ACCGOV YouTube Channel https://youtu.be/1LJ06t-edPc In attendance: Mike Mathews, Keith Sanders, David Asman, Robert Miles, Grant Tribble, Craig Westwood, Chris Lowery (Holt Consulting), Brian Thompson (RS&H), Peter Hughes (RS&H), Camera Dunn (RS&H), Blaine Williams, Davin Welter. Note-taker: Davin Welter 1) Chair Update and announcements: Mr. Sanders welcomed the participants and previewed the agenda. Mr. Sanders said that he is continuing to act as chair while Dr. Napier is away. He reminded everyone that as acting chair his vote is able to count toward a quorum (which is four members). Mr. Mathews introduced Brian Thompson, Peter Hughes, and Camera Dunn from RS&H Consulting who will become our newest consultants and they will work on the construction phase of the Runway 2-20 project. Mr. Sanders said he expects Dr. Napier to return in March. 2) January Meeting Minutes: The January minutes were approved as submitted, per unanimous vote. Mr. Westwood moved and Mr. Miles seconded to approve Minutes. 3) Airport Manager Reports a) Financial & Operations Report: January continued the trend of good financial reports for the airport. UGA basketball games continue to provide revenue. For the rest of the year, we expect revenue to slowdown and not be as robust as it has been the last couple of months. We did have to shut down the runway because of the localizer work in the safety area and that may impact revenue in February. b) Capital Improvement Project Updates: Mr. Mathews reported that the Schedule C project which is the construction of the new localizer antenna is almost complete. In February, the old localizer was removed and the area where it existed has been smoothed out. Mr. Lowery stated that south of Runway 9 is a new detention pond and the pond work was delayed because of the old localizer but that is now ready to be completed. Mr. Mathews informed the board that the burn-in for the new localizer will be done next Wednesday. The FAA will perform a flight check after that happens. Schedule A which is the work on the first part of the Taxiway and Schedule B is the midfield section of the taxiway is still in progress. Cold weather and rock have slowed down the project. A waterline that is higher than it should be is also creating issues. Currently, alternatives to remedy the situation are being considered. The design of Runway 2-20 will be handled by Holt Consulting and they will then hand over the project to RS&H for the construction phase. The Runway Object Free Area (ROFA) project to clear brush will need to be started soon. The Self- Service Fuel unit is in the budget being considered for FY2023. Our new Titan representative is suggesting that AHN purchase a new tank and Titan will help with the Self-Serve unit. Mr. Sanders asked about timeline for this project. Mr. Mathews responded that once the budget has been approved we can move forward on it which would probably be sometime after July 1, 2022. Mr. Sanders also asked about the new hanger opportunity and Mr. Mathews said that he is just starting the investigation of how to proceed. c) Marketing & Outreach: Mr. Mathews reported that Youth Leadership Athens visited the airport this month and received a tour of our facilities. Mr. Tribble said he son participated in the event and enjoyed it. His son was impressed to be up close to the airplanes that were on the tarmac.  d) Clear Point Data System Update: Mr. Welter attended training on Clear Point and updated our information which is now current. A copy of the Clear Point report was provided with the meeting materials. Mr. Sanders suggested that we make it an agenda item for our March meeting and take a closer look. ACTION ITEM: Add Clear Point as a March agenda item. 4) Old Business a) CCSD & Ben Epps Airport Outreach Opportunity: Mr. Miles reported that he continues to be in touch with his contacts at Clarke County School District. Because COVID restrictions have loosened at CCSD, there may be an opportunity for students to visit sometime in the future, Mr. Miles said he will continue to let CCSD know that they are welcome. ACTION ITEM: Mr. Miles to continue giving updates during the monthly Authority meetings b) FY 2021 Annual Report: Mr. Welter reported that the Annual Report has been printed and asked members to let him know if they need copies of the report. He also said that the report has been put on the AHN website and can be found under the “About” tab and then under “Annual Reports.” Mr. Welter also stated that the FY2020 report has been listed there as well. 5) New Business a) Events – Mr. Asman reported that the next Hot Dawg Fly-In will occur this weekend. Mr. Asman also reported that Red Bull is interested in hosting a paper airplane event. Height of the facility is important and that may be an issue with the Commercial Terminal but the Colvin Hanger might be a possibility. 6) Standing Committees: Issues & Updates a) Business/Finance: Mr. Sanders reported that there are no current updates. b) Operating: Mr. Asman informed the Authority that there are no zoning issues to present. c) Air Service Development/Marketing: Mr. Tribble reported that he had no current updates. Mr. Mathews will be attending the Mead and Hunt conference in March to continue to attract commercial service to Athens. He will visit with American Airlines, United, Sky West, Allegiant, and possibly Breeze at the conference. 7) Other Business: a) Next meetings: March 22, 2022: 8) Adjourn: 3:32 PM - Mr. Tribble moved and Mr. Miles seconded to adjourn the meeting, with unanimous agreement.