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HomeMy WebLinkAbout20.10.08 - Minutes, Hag Regional AirportHAGERSTOWN REGIONAL AIRPORT ADVISORY COMMISSION Minutes of the Open Meeting October 8, 2020 The Hagerstown Regional Airport Advisory Commission held a public meeting on Thursday, October 8, 2020 at 3:00 p.m. at the Hagerstown Regional Airport Fire Station Training Room, 18434 Showalter Road, Hagerstown, Maryland. Commission members at the meeting were: Jack Miller, Sam Cool, George Stone, John Barr, and Ex -Officio County Commissioner Randall Wagner. Airport staff members present were Washington County Department of Business Development- Jonathan Horowitz, Business Development Leader, Garrison Plessinger, Airport Director, Gene Bolanowski, Operations Manager, Peggy Siler, Airline Station Leader, and Richard Lesh, Office Associate. Mr. John Barr called the meeting to order on Thursday, October 8, 2020 at 3:00 p.m. Closed Session There were no topics to discuss in Closed Session. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion made by Mr. Stone, seconded by Mr. Miller to approve the minutes of the September 10, 2020 meeting. The motion passed unanimously. Special Note: Due to County policies the meeting was not open to the public. I$][awl Lin at 17 1c] W Df.Xy Mr. Plessinger reported the following: • Terminal Expansion update: The Passenger Boarding Bridge is installed. Operational and maintenance training will be starting next week. • Progress is continuing on the Runway 9/27 mill and overlay project. Taxi Way D and B relocation is complete. The Mill and Overlay on the main runway has begun working at night from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Runway 2/20 will remain open except when working on the intersection. • Still waiting for the appraisals for the Land Acquisition of corner of the New Heights Industrial Park in order to fix the runway visibility zone issue on runway 2/20. • The lowest bid for the Hangar 21 Vestibule project was more than double the original estimate. Since there is no local match required due to the Cares Act, the project will go forward. 0 The Airport received a Cares Act reimbursement for wages and benefits through June 30, 2020. Hagerstown Regional Airport Advisory Commission Meeting Minutes of October 8, 2020 Page 2 of 3 NEW BUSINESS There was no new business to discuss. AIRPORT DIRECTOR'S UPDATE Mr. Plessinger reported on the following: There is no new information on Air Service Development. On a recent conference call with the Maryland Aviation Administration Mr. Plessinger was informed the Airlines are expecting it to take three years before the passenger numbers return to previous levels. Current passenger levels at Baltimore Washington International are at 50 percent. There is no new information on the bill presented by Maryland Representative David Trone to restore the Essential Air Service. AIRLINE REPORT Ms. Siler reported in the last month there was a total of 1673 Passengers and 475 bags. The Passenger Boarding Bridge was installed on Tuesday September 29th. Training on the Passenger Boarding Bridge will start next Tuesday October 13th. As of September 21St, the Maintenance Agreement with Plane Care and Allegiant was approved and signed by both parties. The passenger numbers look good for the upcoming holiday season. Allegiant will be coming out with the summer flight schedule soon. Mr. Plessinger reported he is working with the County Finance department to determine the best way to proceed to provide food and beverages for the passengers in the holdroom. The members recommended having a grand opening event when the construction is complete. OPERATIONS REPORT Mr. Bolanowski reported: The Full Scale Drill is going forward on Saturday, October 17th starting at 9 am. A final logistics and planning meeting was held this morning to review final outstanding items, to make sure there will be participation from our local first responders, and to clarify final details necessary for the successful execution of the drill's objectives. The drill is going to be closed to the public due to COVID restrictions, and public notices are being prepared for distribution for local news media. On Sept. 23 rd, at 11:47 am, an Experimental aircraft doing practice take offs and landings at the airport suffered an engine failure and attempted to land on Runway 02. The pilot did not make it Hagerstown Regional Airport Advisory Commission Meeting Minutes of October 8, 2020 Page 3 of 3 to the runway and crashed into the safety area between Showalter Road and the Runway. Both pilot and passenger were able to walk away from the crash, but the aircraft suffered extreme structural damage and likely will be declared a total loss. The Airport and first responders preformed a successful response to the aircraft accident and the airport is assisting the NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) and FSDO (Flight Standards District Office) of the Federal Aviation Administration in conducting the aircraft accident investigation. The accident is still under investigation, and there is no preliminary report that discloses any details. COUNTY COMMISIONERS UPDATE Mr. Wagner reported Washington County is looking good financially. The County is increasing hiring, so that key positions can be filled. It is good news that the Hagerstown Aviation Museum signed a lease with New Heights Industrial Park. BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT REPORT Mr. Horowitz reported that the New Heights Industrial Park is happy to have the Hagerstown Aviation Museum as tenants. The small business Grant Program has dispersed over 8 million dollars to over 850 businesses. The Business Development Department has been continuing their outreach to businesses in Washington County. There are several big projects going on in the County that will provide many jobs. MEMBERS COMMENTS There were no members comments to report. ADJOURNMENT Mr. Miller made a motion, seconded by Mr. Stone to adjourn the meeting at 3:40p.m. The motion passed unanimously. Respectfully submitted, Nor n Morin, r., Ch r