Group learns what it would take to make commercial hangar a reality: Lynchburg Regional Airport (KLYH), Virginia

A little more than a month after an economic development consultant laid out a new strategic plan for the Lynchburg Economic Development Authority, its members spent Thursday morning learning what it will take to make one of the plan’s priorities — a commercial airline hangar — a reality.

Last month, Jay Garner, president of consulting and site selection firm Garner Economics, included the construction of a hangar for plane assembly and repair at the Lynchburg Regional Airport in a lengthy list of actions the city should take to give the community “transformative assets” and spur economic growth.

Garner said building a hangar and attracting a company specializing in aircraft maintenance, repair and operations would ensure the city still would get constructive use out of the airport site, even if commercial service ceases in the future.

Thursday, Airport Director Mark Courtney and Brian Gleason of economic development office addressed some opportunities and obstacles the EDA and city will encounter if they intend to follow Garner’s plan.

Based on the airport’s current master plan, Courtney said, there are two sites that could be used for a hangar. One 15-acre site, along with an unused runway, had been set aside for use by Liberty University’s school of aeronautics.

The school has since set up operations on a different part of the property, he said, and the land and runway could be combined to create a 30-acre site for the hangar.

There is a substantial amount of acreage designated for a potential airport commerce park, Courtney said, though it presents more challenges for redevelopment for a hangar.

In his presentation, Gleason said the hangar is one item in Garner’s list that the EDA is the lead agency on, unlike some other elements requiring leadership from other localities or groups.

With that in mind, he said, the authority should push forward on actions to help make the hangar a reality, including studying the market and other localities that have taken on similar projects; communicating with partners such as the airport, Campbell County and Lynchburg; pursuing a market feasibility study; and identifying available capital resources and prospective tenant businesses.

Source:   http://www.newsadvance.com