Chandler Airpark is about to take off.
Officials plan to make announcements about coming developments soon. They wouldn't offer hints about aviation-related companies that may be on the way, but it's good to see the land surrounding Chandler Municipal Airport getting positive attention again.
An airport can be a major job and revenue generator. Officials expect the 125 private-sector jobs at the airport today to grow to 35,000 by 2040. Chandler cannot afford to miss out on that.
The city's job hubs have their own personalities: technology on the Price Corridor, research and entrepreneurship at the Innovations business incubator in west Chandler, and education in downtown. The airport and surrounding airpark would round out the mix with aviation and the types of companies that support the industry.
Dubbed the "Final Frontier," the 9-square-mile airpark is the city's last major area of undeveloped space. If developers want to build on Chandler land as large as 120 acres, or about the size of Chandler Fashion Center, they have to come here.
The airport was destined for good things before the real-estate market sank. Not wanting a plethora of vacancies around the airport, officials advised developers to halt plans. The pause in development gave the city the opportunity to better prepare the area.
Roads around the airpark are now improved and the newer Santan Freeway allows airport users to get in and out fast, a better alternative to traffic and security hassles at major airports.
That makes Chandler's airport a good fit for executive business travelers, personal-aircraft owners and flight-training instructors and students. It's a niche market officials are eager to tap.
But with airport growth comes the potential for noise complaints. The city has long resisted homebuilders' pressure to sell airpark parcels in order to protect the airport. Even so, nearby residents have complained about noise over the years.
To assuage their concerns, aircraft owners and the pilots' association crafted a plan to reduce noise. The plan is posted on the airport's Web page, chandleraz.gov/airport. Tips include performing practice maneuvers over uninhabited areas and avoiding flights between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. whenever possible.
The city completed a voluntary noise study last year that has been sent to the Federal Aviation Administration for acceptance. It suggests extending one of the runways from 4,870 feet to 5,700 feet, a move only possible by a public bond vote. Longer runways are safer and can reduce ground noise.
Given that voters rejected a bond measure in 2007 to extend the runway, even after the City Council imposed weight limits on aircraft that would use the airport, the runway is staying as is.
Even so, officials are confident that they can successfully market the airport to executive travelers because smaller aircraft don't require longer runways. That's good to hear.
To further entice development, the city will allow through-the-fence leases, airport lingo for allowing private parties to access the runway. The city also is working to secure a fixed-base operator that can provide food, fuel and other concierge services.
These are big selling points in the small-aircraft world. As the pun aptly describes, Chandler's airport is about to take off.
About Chandler Airpark
Nine square miles bounded by Arizona Avenue, Gilbert Road, Pecos Road and Ocotillo Road.
The airport, established in 1948, is open 24 hours a day.
Two parallel runways are 4,401 and 4,870 feet long.
The airport layout plan allows aircraft weighing 30,000 pounds. The runways can support infrequent landings of aircraft weighing 75,000 pounds, including fuel, cargo and passengers, and with a wingspan as wide as 79 feet. The runway cannot be expanded without a citizen vote to accommodate anything larger.
The control tower averages 650 to 700 takeoffs and landings per day. On March 8, it logged 905.
Current companies include Chandler Air Service, Cardinal Health, Quantum Helicopters and Covance. Approximately 125 private-sector jobs exist at the airport.
Officials plan to make announcements about coming developments soon. They wouldn't offer hints about aviation-related companies that may be on the way, but it's good to see the land surrounding Chandler Municipal Airport getting positive attention again.
An airport can be a major job and revenue generator. Officials expect the 125 private-sector jobs at the airport today to grow to 35,000 by 2040. Chandler cannot afford to miss out on that.
The city's job hubs have their own personalities: technology on the Price Corridor, research and entrepreneurship at the Innovations business incubator in west Chandler, and education in downtown. The airport and surrounding airpark would round out the mix with aviation and the types of companies that support the industry.
Dubbed the "Final Frontier," the 9-square-mile airpark is the city's last major area of undeveloped space. If developers want to build on Chandler land as large as 120 acres, or about the size of Chandler Fashion Center, they have to come here.
The airport was destined for good things before the real-estate market sank. Not wanting a plethora of vacancies around the airport, officials advised developers to halt plans. The pause in development gave the city the opportunity to better prepare the area.
Roads around the airpark are now improved and the newer Santan Freeway allows airport users to get in and out fast, a better alternative to traffic and security hassles at major airports.
That makes Chandler's airport a good fit for executive business travelers, personal-aircraft owners and flight-training instructors and students. It's a niche market officials are eager to tap.
But with airport growth comes the potential for noise complaints. The city has long resisted homebuilders' pressure to sell airpark parcels in order to protect the airport. Even so, nearby residents have complained about noise over the years.
To assuage their concerns, aircraft owners and the pilots' association crafted a plan to reduce noise. The plan is posted on the airport's Web page, chandleraz.gov/airport. Tips include performing practice maneuvers over uninhabited areas and avoiding flights between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. whenever possible.
The city completed a voluntary noise study last year that has been sent to the Federal Aviation Administration for acceptance. It suggests extending one of the runways from 4,870 feet to 5,700 feet, a move only possible by a public bond vote. Longer runways are safer and can reduce ground noise.
Given that voters rejected a bond measure in 2007 to extend the runway, even after the City Council imposed weight limits on aircraft that would use the airport, the runway is staying as is.
Even so, officials are confident that they can successfully market the airport to executive travelers because smaller aircraft don't require longer runways. That's good to hear.
To further entice development, the city will allow through-the-fence leases, airport lingo for allowing private parties to access the runway. The city also is working to secure a fixed-base operator that can provide food, fuel and other concierge services.
These are big selling points in the small-aircraft world. As the pun aptly describes, Chandler's airport is about to take off.
About Chandler Airpark
Nine square miles bounded by Arizona Avenue, Gilbert Road, Pecos Road and Ocotillo Road.
The airport, established in 1948, is open 24 hours a day.
Two parallel runways are 4,401 and 4,870 feet long.
The airport layout plan allows aircraft weighing 30,000 pounds. The runways can support infrequent landings of aircraft weighing 75,000 pounds, including fuel, cargo and passengers, and with a wingspan as wide as 79 feet. The runway cannot be expanded without a citizen vote to accommodate anything larger.
The control tower averages 650 to 700 takeoffs and landings per day. On March 8, it logged 905.
Current companies include Chandler Air Service, Cardinal Health, Quantum Helicopters and Covance. Approximately 125 private-sector jobs exist at the airport.
Maps, studies, noise abatement and other information are available at chandleraz.gov/airport. The noise line is 480-782-3550.
Read more: http://www.azcentral.com
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