Capital Improvement Requests Pour In
More than 2,000 proposals for airport-related improvement projects costing in excess of $6.7 billion have been submitted as part of a planned multiyear capital improvement program. The program will be conducted by Caltrans Aeronautics during fiscal years 2000 to 2002.
The projects include $2.5 billion in airport improvements and another $4.2 billion to improve highway access to the state's airports. The road projects came in response to a state Senate resolution to identify transportation needs in coming years.
The 2,000-plus airport projects will be ranked and presented to the California Transportation Commission for adoption in the Caltrans Aeronautics Capital Improvement Plan. Existing funding for the Caltrans Aeronautics Program is expected to fall short of being able to address many capital improvement needs.
Funding Legislation Moves to Appropriations Committee
A state Senate bill that would strengthen existing airport land use laws and provide a source of funding for airport land use commissions (ALUCs) and noise mitigation projects is being considered by the Senate Appropriations Committee.
The bill moved to the committee after being approved by the Senate Committee on Transportation in April. The measure, S.B.1084, would move revenue from the existing sales tax on jet fuel used in commercial and general aviation aircraft from the state's general fund to its aeronautics account. This money would then be used to fund programs in the bill, which include tightening airport land-use laws. The measure is cosponsored by AOPA and other members of the California Aviation Coalition.
Airport Protection Legislationmoves Through Senate
Another legislative measure affecting airports is also moving through the state Senate. S.B.1286 establishes specific criteria to be considered by Caltrans Aeronautics when reviewing requests from local governments for a waiver of their obligation to repay certain state funds when a local airport is closed. This legislation is in response to a law passed last year that permits forgiving repayment of certain state grant funds. The criteria includes a list of various services performed at the airport that benefit local and regional communities. AOPA is supporting this measure.
Pilots Support Charting Change
Members of the San Diego Airspace Users Working Group have expressed their support for proposed changes to local terminal area charts. The changes, which were recommended by the FAA, would remove the frequency box from its current location on the edge of the chart. The box, which currently lists all frequencies, would be replaced by separate boxes for each frequency. The location of each new box would correspond to the chart sector to which it applies. The boxes will have a white background to enable pilots to quickly identify them and easily read the frequencies. Members of the working group agreed that the idea was sound and unanimously recommended that the FAA pursue the changes.
Traffic Study Under Way in Los Angeles
Members of the Los Angeles Airspace Users Working Group will learn more about potential traffic conflicts and other issues when they get the results of a new air traffic study now under way. The study will examine air traffic in the Los Angeles Basin. Large numbers of aircraft flying both IFR and VFR converge in the Los Angeles area, and some members of the group are concerned that new traffic routes could create conflicts. No date has been set for the completion of the study, but working group members say that they expect it will be available soon.
Santa Clara County Airports to Get Runway Repairs
In the coming months two of Santa Clara County's airports will be closed briefly for repairs, according to Doug Rice, a county airport commissioner. Palo Alto Airport will be closed for four to five days in September while the runway is repaired. In addition to the repairs, the airport will receive a new 400-foot-long runway safety zone. Reid-Hillview Airport in San Jose will also be closed for runway repairs, but no date has been set for that action.
Supervisor Seeks Economic Study for Buchanan Field
Contra Costa County Supervisor Mark DeSaulnier is asking the county to order an economic study of Concord's Buchanan Field. DeSaulnier says that the study is long overdue and the time is ripe, as commercial airlines express new interest in the airport and flight school Helicopter Adventures, which accounts for approximately one-third of the airport's 220,000 annual operations, considers relocating.
DeSaulnier would also like to create an ad hoc committee to address other airport-related issues, including how to retain current air traffic control tower staff levels if the number of operations falls short of FAA minimums, ways to improve the system for filing noise complaints, and possible noise mitigation measures.
Two local start-up airlines have expressed interest in using the airport to offer flights between Southern California and Concord. Both People Airways Corp. of San Leandro and West States Express Inc. of Concord would use aircraft carrying between 50 and 100 passengers.
The proposed economic study would cost between $20,000 and $30,000, according to the Contra Costa Times. The study would address potential noise issues, as well as Helicopter Adventures' plans to relocate to a more modern facility.
Development Proposed for Los Banos
Los Banos Municipal Airport could be threatened by a proposed housing development nearby. A developer has proposed building a residential housing project directly under the final approach path to Runway 32. Local pilots have opposed the idea, saying that there is plenty of open space available for development — space that would not create a potential conflict between residents and airport users. Merced County's Airport Land Use Commission has voted to approve the project, according to the California Pilots Association.
Local Groups Battle Over Watsonville Municipal Airport
A group calling itself the Watsonville Airport Study Committee recently called for conversion of the airport property to a variety of uses, including industry, schools, housing, recreation, and parks. But Watsonville Municipal Airport is largely surrounded by agricultural land, and a powerful agricultural group, the Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau, strongly disagrees with any plans to close the airport. The farmers' group voted to support the airport as an important part of the local transportation infrastructure.
Super Safety Seminar Includes San Diego Airspace
San Diego held its annual "Super Safety Seminar" last month at Gillespie Field. The daylong event, which is sponsored by the FAA, Gillespie Field, and others, included a presentation on airspace issues around San Diego, which has been struggling with new Class B airspace and proposed changes at Brown Field.California's airports will receive more than $54 million in federal grant money under the Airport Improvement Program (AIP). As a condition of the grants, airports that receive funding must agree to a series of covenants designed to ensure that the airports serve the public interest. San Francisco International Airport will be the state's single largest recipient of federal AIP grants, with a total of $8.4 million. San Diego International-Lindbergh Field will get the next highest amount, $4.9 million. Rounding out the top five are San Jose International Airport ($4.5 million), Ontario International Airport ($4.5 million), and Palm Springs Regional Airport ($3.2 million).
Other airports that will receive $1 million or more include: John Wayne Airport-Orange County ($2.5 million), Mariposa-Yosemite ($2.5 million), Chino ($2.3 million), Salinas Municipal ($2.1 million), Nut Tree ($2 million), Long Beach/Daugherty Field ($1.9 million), Oxnard ($1.9 million), Metropolitan Oakland International ($1.8 million), Brackett Field ($1.4 million), McClellan-Palomar ($1.3 million), Fresno Yosemite International ($1.3 million), Mojave ($1.2 million), and Sacramento International ($1.2 million).
The following airports will receive lesser amounts: Brawley Municipal Airport, Chico Municipal Airport, Colusa County Airport, Inyokern Airport, Meadows Field, Modesto City-County/Harry Sham Field, Monterey Peninsula Airport, Redding Municipal Airport, San Luis Obispo County/McChesney Field, Santa Barbara Municipal Airport, Santa Maria Public Airport/Captain G. Allan Hancock Field, Sonoma County Airport, and Visalia Municipal Airport.
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