Big task awaits new manager of small airport

YAKIMA, Wash. — A former executive for a recreational vehicle company. A bank executive. An airport manager.

Two of the three finalists

for the manager position at Yakima Air Terminal may not have the typical airport management experience, but their qualifications reflect a fundamental change in the position.

When Buck Taylor resigned in September, after nearly four years in the position, the airport board cited a difference in management philosophies.

Over time, that philosophy has become clear. No longer is it enough to just understand how to run an airport. The new airport manager must have business savvy, a charismatic persona and an entrepreneurial mind to face the current and future challenges of the airport.

Little taxpayer help

Though the airport is co-owned by Yakima County and the city of Yakima, the airport receives little or no taxpayer funding.

The city or county may make a contribution toward some aspect of the airport (the city of Yakima, for example, gave the airport $15,500 in 2008 for insuring airport buildings), but nearly all its revenue comes from funds it receives from leasing airport property or terminal space.

At the terminal, the airport leases space to Horizon Air, Hertz Car Rental and the Barnstormers Pub & Eatery, the airport restaurant. It also leases space for a variety of aviation and nonaviation uses.

Wide Hollow Development, a Yakima firm, is leasing airport property on 40th and Washington avenues to build Creekside West, a multiuse development. The airport also leases property for the construction of airplane hangars or farm grazing.

The airport is expected to generate about $820,000 in revenue, above the $781,000 the airport is expected to pay in expenses, according to 2008 budget estimates made in September.

To balance the budget, however, the airport has had to delay some major capital projects such as purchasing a new tractor/mower, upgrading the computer system and working on the landscaping of the airport, said interim airport manager Jerry Kilpatrick.

That's why it's necessary to hire an airport manager who can figure out new sources of revenue for the airport.

"We want to move the airport toward not just self-sufficiency, but real profitability," said Dave Edler, mayor of the city of Yakima and an ex-officio member of the airport board.

A shared revenue problem

The Yakima airport is not alone in facing a revenue challenge. Revenue generation has been a problem for small airports across the country as airlines make widespread cuts in service and the downturn in the economy has reduced business activity on airport property, said Mike Boggs, direction of aviation services for Mead & Hunt in Eugene, Ore.

Boggs has served as a consultant for the Yakima airport to help it secure additional commercial air service.

"(Running) a small airport is a public entrepreneurial activity," he said. "Airports for the most part need to be able to generate revenue sufficient to cover costs, and to do that requires an entrepreneurial mindset."

The new airport manager has the opportunity to find creative ways to make money, such as marketing the existing airport property for different aviation uses. Or marketing the terminal space for businesses that require air service. And, of course, marketing for additional commercial service.

"We need to strengthen all the airport (business) activity that could and should be going on there," said County Commissioner Mike Leita, who serves as an ex-officio member of the airport board.

Extra revenue would allow the airport to do some much-needed capital projects, such as an aesthetic upgrade to the terminal facility itself.

Landscaping at the airport hasn't been done since the 1960s. The terminal had some heating, air conditioning, plumbing and concourse improvements about a decade ago, but such work did not do much for the old look of the airport.

Although safety and security is the most important priority of the airport, improving the look and layout of the facility is important too, Kilpatrick said.

"Let's get someone in here to get the money to make it a more pleasant environment," he said.

Overhanging overlay

The airport overlay, which restricts certain types of development near the airport to ensure the safety and quality of life for those who live or run businesses need the airport, has been a source of contention for years.

Airport board officials have advocated for restrictions that ensure the utmost safety and security as the airport plans for future growth, such as a runway extension.

But while the city of Yakima advocates for airport growth, it believes that the restrictions should not put unnecessary limits on what landowners can do with their own property.

As the final airport overlay plan goes to the general public in the next year, that contention will come up again, especially from those who own property within the proposed overlay area, Edler said.

It's important that the airport manager, who likely will make $75,000 to $95,000 a year plus benefits, is out in the community to help reconcile the needs of both the airport and the community at large.

That person should also be able to promote the role the airport plays in the Yakima Valley's economic development.

"We need a person who can be a business person, be a leader, be a role model from the standpoint of how the airport can be fitting better with the community," said airport board member Les Flue, who is co-chairing the selection process.

Leita shares that belief. The new airport board manager must be willing to work with a variety of government entities, property owners and others in the community for the good of the airport and the Valley it serves.

"A key component of the new airport manager is that (he or she) will work cooperatively with the city and the county and the airport board to move the airport to the next level," he said.

Forward thinking

The only constant with running an airport, Kilpatrick said, is that there is always change.

The document that lays out the strategy to deal with those changes long-term is the airport master plan. The current plan dates back to 1996. Even with a 2003 update, the document will not sufficiently outline how the airport will sustain itself in the next 10 years, Leita said.

That's why the new airport board manager will need to lead in developing a new master plan, which would outline the airport's future for at least the next 20 years.

The plan would include strategies for generating revenue from airport property and the necessary capital improvements that need to be made long-term, among other things.

"We feel there's just a lot of opportunities that have yet to be realized and that need to be realized," Edler said. "We believe that part of that is a real reworking of the master plan."

A qualified staff

For those who are concerned that a business-oriented manager will cripple basic airport operations, board members stress that the airport already has a qualified staff to handle those tasks.

The airport manger will supervise eight full-time staff members who help run the airport and two or three temporary employees who handle custodial work.

Kilpatrick has served as the assistant airport manager for more than 31 years and will return to that position when a new manager is hired. And in that role, he likely will be overseeing the day-to-day operations of the airport.

It's important for the new airport manager to best utilize the skills and experience of the staff, he said. Kilpatrick estimates that the staff together has about 100 years of experience running the airport.

"Basically, I want someone to team up with, to free us up so we can do our jobs," he said.

* Mai Hoang can be reached at 577-7685 or mhoang@yakimaherald.com.

The finalists.

Dennis Wiss, airport director of the Show Low Regional Airport in Show Low, Ariz.

Jennifer Grunest, a senior vice president for US Bank in Portland.

Mike Redmond, former chief operating officer for the now-closed Western Recreational Vehicles in Yakima.

The finalists will interview for the position on Jan. 27. The interview will also include a reception where they will meet government officials and the local aviation community.

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