Queensbury at-Large Supervisor Doug Beaty, with his arms raised, asks Genesee County Highway Superintendent Tim Hens, facing camera, a question about about management practices during a meeting Monday.
QUEENSBURY — Warren County leaders heard Monday from a western New York official who told how his county took over operations of its airport, cut its losses and essentially breaks even on the airstrip after years of losses.
Tim Hens, the highway superintendent in Genesee County, said the county has run its airport between Rochester and Buffalo for about 20 years and accrues a surplus of between $90,000 to $130,000 annually. That surplus covers the costs of debt for improvements at the facility near Batavia.
“We were losing $200,000 a year before the switch,” he said. “The airport was a very negative item.”
That changed after the county took over, allowing for investment in upgrades on the property and a runway extension, he told Warren County supervisors and regional economic development leaders.
Warren County supervisors are trying to determine whether to fully privatize the airport to cut costs, but some have questioned whether doing away with a private fixed base operator (Rich Air LLC) and taking over flight operations in addition to the facilities management that is done by the county could be more financially beneficial.
The county extended the airport’s runway by 1,000 feet, to 5,500 feet, in 2005 and has had success attracting more traffic, including jets based at the airport, he explained. The airport has 3.5 full-time equivalent employees, and the county DPW handles snowplowing, grass-cutting and other maintenance, with airport revenue paying the tab.
By being aggressive when seeking grants and taking all of the fuel sales revenue, the financial picture has improved significantly.
Hens said his experience has been that running an airport with some public and some private resources seems to be problematic.
“I think you have to be all one way or the other,” he said.
County supervisors and members of the local Airport Advisory Committee quizzed Hens on different issues. Queensbury at-Large Supervisor Doug Beaty, a proponent of fully privatizing Warren County airport, pointed out that the Batavia airport is “not making money. In a good year, you’re going to break even.”
Warren County supervisors asked Hens for more information about different aspects of the operation and also discussed potentially hiring him as a consultant as it moves forward seeking a potential privatization of the airport in Queensbury.
Glens Falls 1st Ward Supervisor Dan Girard, chairman of the county board’s Facilities Committee, said the Genesee County input was information to help Warren County “see what our avenues are.”
“The situation in Warren County may not line up on all fours with Genesee County, but it shows there are other options to take a look at,” said Ed Bartholomew, president of the EDC Warren County economic development organization.
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