Airport Commission

Fitchburg Municipal Airport Commission Meeting Minutes September 18, 2024 LOCATION: City of Fitchburg Legislative Building TIME: 6:06 PM Attendees: Airport Commissioners: Commissioner Richard Liberatore, Commissioner Eric Tkal, and DPW Commissioner Nick Erickson Others in attendance: Airport Manager Peter Kettle, Assistance Airport Manager Ashley Metivier and remotely is Gale Associate, Matt Caron. Meeting Protocol: Meeting called to order by Commissioner Liberatore who is filling in for Chair Raymond. Commissioner Liberatore introduced the Commission Members and all others who were in attendance. Previous Months Minutes-including special meeting minutes: Commissioner Liberatore asked for a motion to accept the August Meeting Minutes. Motion was made by Commissioner Tkal and 2nd by Commissioner Erickson to accept the minutes as recorded. All in favor, 3-0. 24-09-01 Action Items from Previous Meeting: Action Items will be covered during the regular meetings agenda. Correspondence to the Commission: There were no correspondence sent to the Airport Commission this month. Project Review- Gale: Monthly Project Update Gale Representatives Matt Caron presented the Monthly project updated report. Environmental Assessment and Wildlife Hazard Assessment: AIP 3-25-0018-034-2023 MassDot provided comments on the Wildlife Hazard Assessment (WHA) Report on Sept. 9,2024. Gale is working with NewEarth to finalize the report. One of the recommendations in the WHA Report was to develop a wildlife Hazard Management Plan (WHMP). This recommendation was supported by both MassDot and FAA. The WHMP was included as a line item in the contract for this project, so funds have already been allocated for this effort. Once the WHA Report and the WHMP have been finalized, this project can be closed out. There is no action required by the Airport. Design and Permitting for Main Apron Reconstruction: Survey field work is completed and the CAD work has been started. Once Gale receives the CAD files, preliminary design of the apron will begin. No action required by the Airport at this time. Groove, Seal and Remark Runway 14-32 (ASMP-2024-FIT-29 and ASMP-2024-FIT-30) The Project is substantially complete. A final inspection for the project was held on August 27, 2024, and the project was accepted by MassDot Aeronautics. Work has begun on the MassDot Closed-out Report. No action required by the Airport. Other Items: Medstar Legal- Gale assisted the Airport in preparing and submitting an FAA and MassDot Grant Application to recover funds associated with the Medstar lawsuit. We are currently preparing a request for reimbursement from the FAA and MassDot. Fitchburg Pilots Association (FPA): Airport Mgr. Kettle advised the Commission that the FPA was looking to move their Young Eagles Event that was previously schedules for October 12, now they were hoping to change their event date to October 19. Commissioner Liberatore made a motion to allow the FPA to move their Young Eagles Event to October 19, 2024. Commissioner Tkal 2nd the motion. All were in favor, 3-0. 24-09-02 New Business: There was no New Business. Old Business: RFP for Non-Aviation Land Lease Update: Airport Mgr. Kettle spoke in regards to the Non-Aviation Land Lease. Mgr. Kettle stated that the RFP is for the land designated for a restaurant at the Airport. He continued to say that the RFP has been completed by the Procurement Division, Mary Delaney but we are still waiting for the Land Lease Agreement from Attorney Mead. The RFP should be out by the end of the month. The RFP will be open for 90 days. Action- Airport Mgr. Kettle / Mary Delaney / Attn. Lisa Mead Minimum Standards – Item 2.3 Commissioner Liberatore Tabled the discussion of the MS until Chair Raymond's return. Action – Chair Raymond and Commission Crawford Street Safety Update- Nick Erickson: DPW Commissioner Erickson reported that the City has recently sent out a bid for a Paving and Roadway Reconstruction contract. The low bidder was Lazaro Paving. In the contract Commissioner Erickson included guardrails along Crawford Street in the locations that have been identified as problem areas. Commissioner Erickson stated that guardrail price came in at $42.00 a foot for straight section of which we would need 1,160 feet. Curved sections of guardrail came in at $45.00 a foot and we would need 290 feet. The end sections for the guardrails came in at a total of $7,200. So to put everything into prospective the total for the entire guardrail system came to $90,570 for 1,450 feet of rail. DPW Commissioner Erickson is hoping to use Chapter 90 funds which is State Grant Funding for these types of projects. The guardrail on Crawford Street is a safety issue and he is going to do his best to see that this project can get the proper funding and get completed in a timely manner. Action- Commissioner Erickson / Mgr. Kettle Rocking Horse Enterprises: Airport Mgr. Kettle reported to the Commission that Rocking Horse Enterprises, the private company that is working to construct 30 new hangars is still moving forward in the planning stage for this project. Mgr. Kettle added that presently there are 23 people who are interested in purchasing hangars. This is a big incentive for this project and both the Airport Manager and the Commission realize the true significance of making this hangar construction project a reality. Gale Associates is now involved in doing the site work for this project and involved in other planning aspects of the project. So all there is needed now is for Rocking Horse Enterprises and Gale Associates to put together a signed agreement and this Hangar Construction Project can get started. Action-Airport Mgr. Kettle After Hours Bathroom Facility: The Commission will table this item until Chair Raymond returns. Action- Airport Mgr. Kettle Financial Review: Approval of Commitments and Abatement's: Airport Mgr. Kettle reminded the Commission that we had a 3.35% increase on the first of September. BJ Wholesale was on a list of about 36 people and companies who are involved in that revenue increase. Mgr. Kettle mistakenly added the 3.35% increase to BJ's, forgetting that BJ's has a 5 year annual renewable contract with the Airport. So BJ's was unnecessarily charged $15.17 by mistake, so an abatement will be issued to correct the account. Next Regular Meeting: October 16, 2024 at 6pm. Regular Meeting Adjourned: Commissioner Liberatore made a motioned to adjourn the meeting at 6:30 pm. All were in favor. Respectfully Submitted, Richard Liberatore Recording Secretary