Aviation Committee Meeting

CITY OF TULARE ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES DEPARTMENT PROPERTY SERVICES DIVISION TULARE AVIATION COMMITTEE MONDAY, JULY 27, 2015 I. CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Tulare Aviation Committee was called to order by Chairman Lee Brehm, at 6:05 p.m. COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: Lee Brehm, Chairman Michael Groah Gene Roberts, Vice Chairman Casey Jenkins COMMITTEE MEMBERS ABSENT: Ray Dias Jr. STAFF PRESENT: Steve Bonville, Property Services Manager Rich Lujan, Facilities Maintenance & Airport Operations Mgr. Melissa Hermann, Property Services Department Assistant STUDENTS PRESENT: None OTHERS PRESENT: None II. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The pledge of allegiance was led by Chairman Lee Brehm III. CITIZEN COMMENTS None IV. COMMUNICATIONS None V. CONSENT CALENDAR Approve minutes of Monday, January 26, 2015 regular meeting. It was motioned by Lee Brehm, seconded by Gene Roberts and unanimously carried that minutes of January 26, 2015 be approved as presented. VI. STUDENT REPORT Steve Bonville suggested that new member Michael Groah could help in filling the student position as he is affiliated to the High School District. Mr. Groah agrees. VII. GENERAL BUSINESS 1. Notice of Completion for Runway Rehabilitation Steve Bonville lets the committee know that the Notice of Completion for Runway Rehabilitation will be at the next Council meeting as a formality. Mr. Bonville explains to new committee members that last year the runway was completely resurfaced. The City has received all the Federal funding now and the next step would be to close out the project. There have been no issues with the runway. 2. ALP (Airport Layout Plan) Update Steve Bonville reported that the ALP is about 70% complete. Mr. Bonville explains that this is an update to the master plan from 2005 to take into consideration the projects being introduced that Tulare Aviation Committee 2 Minutes – July 27, 2015 were not on the original plan. An example would be the PAPI 13 (Precision Approach Path Indicator). The airport currently has a VASI using 30 year old technology that is no longer serviced. In order to modify it, we have to include those things in the update of the master plan to receive grant funding. Mr. Bonville stated that he had recently put the paperwork together for a grant to replace the VASI with a PAPI on 13 as well as replacing old signs which are not to current standards. He anticipates he will apply for the grant later this year and have it awarded by the end of this year or the start of next year. This is about a $125,000 project. The City has approved the matching funds for this project. The ALP needs to be complete before the PAPI project. 3. Ceilometer / Vaisala Ending of Support Steve Bonville explains that the airport has an automated weather observation station (AWOS) which broadcasts general weather conditions on the radio via phone. The ceilometer determines and reports the current cloud coverage at the airport which is announced through AWOS. The support for the ceilometer is ending in 2016 and a new ceilometer will cost around $40,000. The plan is to put this in as another grant project around the end of 2016 or the start of 2017. 4. Tenants’ Requirements for City Water Connections Steve Bonville reports that the airport has a couple new tenants. The Tulare Ag hangar is no longer Tulare Ag. Another crop dusting tenant will be taking over this hangar. The City is negotiating the lease for this hangar. The requirements for all the tenants in that line will be to hook to City water sometime in the near future to get off the well that they are on. With this new lease, at the tenant’s request, they want to be hooked up to City water within the next 12 months. This tenant will have an increase of about 150,000 gallons of water per year with his crop dusting business as he is taking over Tulare Ag customers and bringing in some of his own. When connected to the City water, he will pay the commercial rate. It will be metered. This will be the same thing for 2 hangars down, Blue Sky. Mr. Bonville is working with West Coast Governor to take over that hangar. This will be a new lease which will include the requirement to connect to City water. 5. Hangar Availability Steve Bonville reports that all hangars are occupied. Mr. Michael Groah asked what the waitlist looks like for a hangar at the airport. Mr. Bonville responds that there are typically 6 to 10 people on the waitlist at a time. Some on the waitlist are active members that want to upgrade to a larger hangar. Also, something that the FFA is watching for is that the hangars are only being used to store aircrafts. The airport takes federal funding and is obligated to make sure that it is being used for aviation purposes only. VIII. ITEMS OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS INTERESTS – Steve Bonville: Mr. Bonville announced that he did some research on aircraft property taxes that come in from the County to the Tulare Airport. The numbers were from 2014. For the ending of the year 2014, the Tulare Airport received $6,209 in revenue back. In comparison, the Visalia Airport received $108,163. Mr. Bonville stated that the goal in the future is to have an anchor tenant at the airport that will be a catalyst to bring business in. The airport currently just treads water and general aviation may or may not recover. The airport has good leasable land and a freeway frontage. Within the next 8 to 10 years, the interchange by the airport could possibly be improved. The hope is to draw more business there and let private enterprise take off. Mr. Lee Brehm asked Mr. Bonville if he does a CIP. Mr. Bonville explained that he recently did a 5 year CIP and included various projects to be completed at the airport within the next 5 years. The City Tulare Aviation Committee 3 Minutes – July 27, 2015 has already agreed to match funding for the proposed projects. Mr. Bonville agrees to bring a copy of the CIP to the next committee meeting. Mr. Bonville let the committee know that he has invited the two new committee members, Mr. Michael Groah and Mr. Casey Jenkins, to go with him to take a tour of the airport. IX. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 6:30 p.m. Next Meeting Monday, August 24, 2015