VIENNA Youngstown Rotary Club plans race on runway

A date will be set for the race at the airport.
THE VINDICATOR
VIENNA -- The Youngstown Rotary Club has proposed a 5-kilometer race on the runway at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport to help increase awareness of the airport.
The race would be called "Run the Runway," and would take place in mid- to late August on a Saturday evening at dusk so that the runway lights could be turned on, according to Chuck Petzinger of the Rotary Club, who has been working on the idea with Tom Nolan, airport director.
Petzinger proposed the idea today at a meeting of the Western Reserve Port Authority, which runs the airport.
Petzinger said most 5K runs have a "hook" to draw people in. One city has a night run in which runners carry glow sticks; the airport-race hook will be the runway and the lights, he said.
Petzinger said he thinks it will be popular with runners because they likely have never run on a runway before and it's a flat surface good for running.
Expenses: The cost to the Rotary Club and the authority would be minimal, he said. Some expenses would include T-shirts for runners, refreshments and security. The likely cost to participants would be $10 to $12. Any left-over proceeds from the race would be split by Rotary and the port authority.
Nolan said the airport will figure out the best day to have the event.
In other business:
UAuthority Finance Chairman Reid Dulberger said the airport is running a deficit of $299,508 so far this year. The deficit comes from higher utility costs, the downturn in the economy, and several out-of-the-ordinary repairs, he said.
UThe authority hired R.W. Armstrong, an engineering consulting firm in Indianapolis, to handle engineering problems on a case-by-case basis, and Landis and Brown, also of Indianapolis, to handle planning and environmental issues on a case-by-case basis.