At the second to last meeting of the Griffin-Spalding Airport Advisory Board, Airport Director Robert Mohl said Blue Sky is moving its offices out of the fixed base operations tenant office, but will continue to keep its planes there. Mohl said the move means that the airport will have 1,100 square feet of space available for rent.
The cost is $800 a month, which includes utilities.
“We’ll talk with anyone who wants to come in,” Mohl said.
The board also watched an economic impact video from the Georgia Department of Transportation on the positive economic impact of airports. In a study, 471,000 jobs were attributed to aviation, which also brings $62.6 billion to the state economy.
Mohl said the video will be posted on the airport website, and he recommended showing the video to promote the transportation sales tax, which, if passed, will help fund the construction of the new airport.
With the passage of recent local legislation, the Airport Advisory Board, will soon be replaced by the Griffin-Spalding County Airport Authority. Advisory Board members have been encouraged by city and county commissioners to submit their names for appointment to the new Airport Authority.
Spalding County Board of Commissioners member Eddie Freeman, who also serves on the Airport Advisory Board, said the county commissioners will be making appointments to the Airport Authority at their meeting on Monday. According to the legislation, members have to be appointed to the new authority within 60 days of the date that the legislation was approved.
The legislation passed the Georgia House of Representatives and Georgia Senate on April 3 and was signed by Gov. Nathan Deal on April 11. The first meeting of the new authority, also according to the legislation, is scheduled for 10 a.m. July 16 in the city courtroom at One Griffin Center.
The Griffin-Spalding County Airport Authority will have nine members, including two commissioners each from the city and county, whose terms on the authority will coincide with their terms of elected office. Terms for posts 5 through 9 on the authority are for six years, except for the initial terms, which are staggered from Dec. 31, 2018, down to Dec. 31, 2014.
The authority will operate the existing airport and the new airport once it is built. All employees of the airport would be employees of the authority. They are currently city employees with Mohl responsible to both the city and county commissions.
The new Airport Authority, unlike the advisory board, would be able to issue revenue bonds, which would be used to fund the construction of the new airport.
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