South Bruce Peninsula Mayor John Close, Georgian Bluffs Mayor Alan Barfoot, and Georgian Bluffs Deputy Mayor Dwight Burley at the Wiarton-Keppel Airport.
James Masters photo.
Brian Reis, Secretary for the Friends of the Airport (FOTA) says that the group wants to investigate the possibility of taking over management of the Wiarton-Keppel airport in a strictly volunteer capacity.
The airport has taken a lot of heat in recent months, due to mismanagement, misinformation, and differing agendas from South Bruce Peninsula and Georgian Bluffs, says Reis. He feels that the airport is a “tremendous asset to the community,” and should be treated as such.
“We know that it does, and can, bring more money into the community,” said Reis during an interview in Wiarton. “It’s very difficult for an airport to produce a profit, just because of the business model that they operate under. They don’t make anything, they don’t sell food, they don’t rent rooms that sort of thing. A study from the American Owners and Pilots Association... shows that small regional airports brought in 42 billion into the US economy. Scale that down for Canada, and that’s still a big amount of money.”
Reis admits that the recent submission of an incomplete business plan to South Bruce Peninsula “fell short,” but maintains that an economic study should be commissioned and completed by the joint councils of Georgian Bluffs and South Bruce Peninsula to assess the feasibility of the airport and how it could be better utilized to produce tourism, travel and boost the local economy of both municipalities.
“Fiddling around with business plans is only useful if you know what you’re shooting for. If you don’t have figures to back up what you’re putting in your plan, it just doesn’t work.”
Reis said that part of existing confusion and misinformation he has heard regarding the airport, is that they’re reserved for the wealthy elite, and serve no real purpose for the average citizen.
“A lot of people think that airports like ours are for rich people - and they’re not. Most of the aircraft that are registered in Canada are not commercially built Sesna’s or Learjets, they’re ordinary, amateur, home-built aircraft. Made from scraps, or from kits by everyday Joe’s like you and I. It’s a hobby. It’s a love. You don’t have to be a millionaire to do it, it’s the same as any other hobby, you invest money in it.”
Reis says that the airport has had, in the past, very successful management running the facility that substantially built the business up. But he says the two municipalities owning the airport together can pose a big problem, as differing agendas can get in the way, and even stop the facilities’ progression.
“You need [successful management]. Of course traffic drops in the winter, we’ve got weather to deal with - but in the summer, we get loads of people heading up to Manitoulin, northern Ontario. They stop in, fuel up, have a bite if the restaurant was open. There’s a courtesy car up there that brings people into town to use some of Wiarton’s downtown businesses, etc.”
Township of Georgian Bluffs Deputy Mayor, Dwight Burley, noted during a phone conversation that open invitations extended to FOTA to attend airport board meetings have never yielded the groups’ participation, but responded to Reis’ volunteer management idea by saying: “yes, by all means. No question about it, we would be happy to talk. It would be good for the whole region.”
Burley said he would gladly sit down with FOTA following some initial conversations with South Bruce Peninsula, and noted that he sees public meetings as imperative to the success of the airport. He added that there’s “a little more to it than that, pro’s and con’s” referencing the joint municipal ownership of the airport working with FOTA.
Burley said he was presently happy with appointing Dan Vachon as interim airport manager, saying that there have been ongoing “great conversations” with management, as well as a number of good ideas circulating about the airport.
“This area won’t see passenger aircraft,” said Burley. “Owen Sound airport and Wiarton need to compliment each other. Maybe combining flight schools and fuel costs, for example.”
Burley also noted that the airports’ relationship with Transport Canada has always been a positive one.
Township of Georgian Bluffs Mayor, Alan Barfoot, said that the idea was a “really good suggestion,” during a phone interview. He added that one of the first things on the agenda of the new council should be to “invite South Bruce Peninsula to our municipality” to weigh out some issues pertaining to the airport.
“We would need to work out some boundary issues, and of course the airport is a really hot topic right now,” said Barfoot. “Of course, someone would have to come up with costs up front. The idea has some merit, and we will certainly take a look at it.”
Barfoot concluded by saying it was “pretty much pointless” to get involved with discussions until a new council has been elected following the October 27th municipal election.
South Bruce Peninsula Mayor, John Close, agreed by saying that utilizing FOTA’s experience in a managerial capacity was “probably the next step” for the airport. Close served as Chair of the airport board back in 2001 before the township amalgamation.
“I would certainly hope that the next council would want to chat,” said Close. “Not only have the Friends [of the airport] contributed thousands of volunteer hours, but also, some good ideas involving sustainability... this is a good opportunity for the airport to step away from the politics associated with it. I’d like to see FOTA conduct a report so both councils could see their recommendations over the airport keeping its certification, or dropping down to a registered airport.”
Close called the airport “a blank slate [that is] nowhere near its potential,” and added that infrastructure is still one of the biggest obstacles that the airport faces. Close referenced the cost of paving runways and paths to existing and potential new hangars that could be used for winter storage, as a big cost facing the facility. This monetary issue is also one of the larger issues that South Bruce Peninsula and the Township of Georgian Bluffs run into when conducting airport business together.
“It all boils down to dollars. We have a great working relationship with Georgian Bluffs. We have to work out how to manage the airport more effectively, and if we can’t - what do we do? Sell, consider other paths?,” said Close.
Close said another topic he would like to see FOTA weigh in on, would be the existing dump sites located on the airport property. The sites consist of buried barrels, and was “done appropriately,” said Close. Close would like to see FOTA present recommendations to both councils on a direction regarding the dump sites.
Reis says that small aircraft are only a small part of breaking into a larger profit margin. ‘Jet A fuel’ could be a huge revenue generator. Jet A, which is a unique specification of jet fuel that has been used in the United States since the 1950’s and is usually not available outside the United States and a select few Canadian airports. Wiarton’s close proximity to Michigan and New York means that some American planes and the Canadian military could use the Wiarton airport as a reliable fuel up station in the future.
Reis recalls a day when he was on volunteer duty in the weather station, when a Canadian military Hercules cargo plane came in to fuel up, and purchased an approximate 2,000 liters of Jet A fuel, while the crew dined in Wiarton. If the Wiarton airport was prepared to accept that kind of business on a regular basis, he added, the municipality would be much better off economically.
“Jet A fuel goes for a lot of money,” said Reis.
A certified mechanic and additional winter storage facilities could also help the airport turn a profit, noted Reis.
Reis adds that the number of American visitors that fly up to search for quarry stone from any number of the Bruce’s quarries is considerably large. Reis says that commissioning an economic study would show how much money really does come in to the community in a year directly because of the airport. But numbers have dropped off drastically, with some estimates from FOTA claiming that traffic has dipped down as much as 80% in the last two years. Reis blames the drop in usage on poor management, and indecision because of the joint-municipal ownership model.
Reis says that the Friends of the Airport would happily voluntarily manage the airport to assist the joint municipal ownership board in lowering their capital costs, if it would help the airport return to its former glory.
“If we took over management, it would be on a strictly volunteer basis... and we’ve got the expertise. We’ve got former airline pilots, military pilots, weather specialists, flight information specialists, we’ve got an aerospace engineer - all locally in Wiarton. One of them worked with NASA and worked on a program to do research on disorientation space, caused by weightlessness,” said Reis.
Reis says the mentality of the present airport board needs to change to help inspire some positive progression.
“If you’re going to manage an airport, at least be in favour of what you’re managing and be willing to support it and do whatever possible to get the thing moving. [They] should take advantage of the assets that are there, and the potential that is there. If a manager can’t get past the management board, he’s just at their beck and call,” said Reis.
Reis says that FOTA will consider presenting a delegation to local council introducing the idea in more detail.
- Source: http://www.wiartonecho.com
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