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Home My WebLink About10-11-2022 Fairhope Airport Authority Meeting MinutesMinutes of Fairhope Airport Authority October 11, 2022 The Fairhope Airport Authority met October 11, 2022 at 5:00PM in the City Hall Council Chambers at 161 N Section Street. Present: Chip Groner, Chairman, Don Lagarde, Vince Boothe, Jack Burrell, Pel Henry and Will Bruce. Amy Pearson was absent. Also present was Josh Myrick, Attorney and Brad Hicks, Attorney. Cynthia A Boothe took the Minutes. The Minutes of.the September 13, 2022 Meeting were considered and approved with a motion by Pel Henry, second by Don Lagarde and unanimously passed. The Minutes of the September 28, 2022 Special Call Meeting were considered and approved with a motion by Vince Boothe secon d by Pel Henry and unanimously passed. Chip Groner stated that the Executive Session needed to be moved up to the next item on the agenda as Brad Hicks has a conflict with it being at the end of the meeting. Josh Myrick stated that a vote would be needed to move the Executive Session to Item #6. A motion was made by Don Lagarde to move the Executive Session to item #6, second by Jack Burrell and unanimously passed. Move to Executive Session to Discuss Settlement with Continental Aerospace: Josh Myrick stated that a motion was needed to move into Executive Session and prior to the vote he certifies that he is licensed to practice law in the State of Alabama and that the pending litigation exception to the Open Meeting Act is applicable to what will be discussed in the Executive Session. A motion was made to Move to Executive Session for 15 to 20 minutes by Vince Boothe, second by Jack Burrell. Chip Groner, Don Lagarde, Vince Boothe, Jack Burrell, Pel Henry and Will Bruce all voted 'Aye.' The Authority Members moved to Executive Session at 5:04PM. Return from Executive Session: The Authority Members returned from Executive Session at 5:22PM. A motion was made by Vince Boothe to reconvene the meeting, second by Don Lagarde and unani mously passed. Discussion/Vote Concerning Settlement with Continental Aerospace: Chip Groner stated that the Authority has a tentative agreement with Continental Aerospace for a two year lease starting October 15, 2022 and over the next 12 months will continue negotiations for lease terms for the North Hangar and at the end of the two years will need to vacate the T-Hangars, FBO and 2 adjacent hangars and consolidate to the North Hangar or leave the Airport altogether. There will also be shared costs for building repairs and maintenance, shared cost for fencing around the fuel farm, a $200.00 cap on the surcharge for engines for 75 engines a year and a cap on the T-Hangar rental rates that will be tied to the consumer price index. After a brief discussion and comments, a motion was made by Jack Burrell to accept the lease amendments and settlement agreement with Continental Aerospace, second by Vince Boothe and unanimously passed. Continental Aerospace Report: No Report. Airport Operations: Chip Groner reported that there are continuing problems with the PAPI and REIL lights and he feels the Authority needs to try to get a different electrical firm to handle the problems as the current contractor is overwhelmed with work at this time. Jordan Stringfellow will help the new contactor with FAA requirements. Chip also reported that the AWOS is still having problems, but parts are on order for repairs. ACA Conference, Air Race, Part Time Airport Manager: Chip Groner asked Russ Kilgore to speak about the Air Race Classic for 2025. Russ stated that he feels the Authority should reconsider sponsoring the start of the Air Race Classic for 2025 which is organized by the 99's, an all ladies aviation organization. He thinks it will bring in a lot of aviators, volunteers from the 99's, and others supporting the race to the City and will bring in a lot of business with restaurants, shopping and hotel nights that would be an economic impact for the community. Chip Groner stated that he felt the Authority could get support from the community to help sponsor the event. Jack Burrell asked Chip to write a letter to the Mayor and City Council to request $5,000.00 to help sponsor the race. After a brief discussion and comments, a motion was made by Pel Henry to sponsor the start of the Air Race Classic for 2025, second by Vince Boothe and unanimously passed. Chip Groner stated that he attended the ACA Conference in Huntsville and reported that it was a big event with good participation and lots of good information. Chip urged the Authority members to attend next year if possible. He also stated that there were representatives of the FAA to speak with and the Authority has a new ADO, Derek Owens, who Chip felt was very interested in the Fairhope Airport. Chip Groner stated that he and Pel Henry have been meeting and discussed hiring a part time Airport Manager. They feel with the Airport growth that it is time to have someone at the Airport to help with the management. He stated that Russ Kilgore has volunteered to help with the interview process, and he has asked Amy Pearson to add $30,000.00 to the budget for next year to fund the position. He stated that he, Pel and Russ would get together and they would have something to present at the next meeting. Richard Wagner Hangar Plans: Sarah Hicks of Partner Architecture and Brandon Miller of White-Spunner Construction presented to the Authority an overview and rendering of the hangar plans for the RDI Hangar for Richard Wagner. After a group question and answer period, a motion was made by Pel Henry to approve the site plans, second by Vince Boothe and unanimously passed. Engineer's Report: Jordan Stringfellow stated that the new ALP has been signed by all parties. She asked the Authority Members if they wanted her to create a shared 1-Drive folder with the ALP, Capital Improvement Plan, Payment Management Plan and other documents for the Airport attached for the members to be able to pull up documents and maps or share the link with others needing that information. All agreed that it would be great to have that file available. She is still waiting on the FAA for a Go Letter to start design for the runway but is expecting it before the end of the month. Jordan stated that she met the new ADO, Derek Owens, at the ACA Conference in Huntsville and he is planning a site visit in the coming weeks and as soon as she knows the date, she will let everyone know in case anyone wants to be there. Jordan stated that the ATP Program has come out with a second round of Terminal Grant Applications that are a 95% match, leaving the Authority to fund the other 5%. She has prepared the application and needs to know if the Authority would like to apply again. After a brief discussion, a motion was made to apply for the grant by Jack Burrell, second by Pel Henry and unanimously passed. Jordan stated the applications are due on the October 24th and as soon as Chip signs it she can send it off. Treasurer's Report: Chip Groner stated that he, Amy Pearson, Pel Henry and Jordan Stringfellow went over the project funding through 2027 and Amy applied . the numbers conservatively to the budget for the Runway Rehabilitation and the Taxiway Lighting System Replacement to help plan for funding of the Authority's share of the project. After a group discussion, a motion was made by Don Lagarde to approve the budget for 2023, second by Pel Henry and unanimously passed. Legal Report: Josh Myrick stated that he was working on the lease agreement for a hangar on the Southwest Side and is answering inquiries about sites and leases on the East Side. He has received a digitally signed lease agreement for Richard Wagner's site but was told by his attorney that an original notarized copy will be sent as soon as possible. Josh also reported that an email had been sent to Redcel's lawyer about compliance issues with the Airport's Minimum Standards, but he has not been sent a reply yet. Other Business: Don Lagarde stated that the grant application for a safe room that the Authority applied for has sent a request for a lot of additional information and has a $900,000.00 match the Authority would have to pay so he feels the Authority should back out of the grant application. After a group discussion it was decided to table this item until the Authority gets a second opinion as to whether to proceed with the application or withdraw. Chip Groner stated that the next meeting needs to be moved to November 15, 2022 due to the General Election on the 8th• Vince Boothe made a motion to move the mee.ting to November 15th, second by Pel Henry and unanimously passed. Comments from the General Pubic: No Report. The Meeting was adjourned at 6:21PM. Chip Groner, Chairman