Mahoning Co. seeks clarity on airport role

Commissioners said they have an interest in what happens at the Trumbull County facility.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- When Mahoning County commissioners look at their role in assisting with emergencies at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport, they see a blur.
What they want to see is a clear picture of what they are supposed to do. So they've called a roundtable meeting next week with officials from Trumbull County and the airport to bring some focus to the view.
The meeting, scheduled for Oct. 11 at the United Auto Workers hall in North Jackson, will include a review of how the two counties responded to a potential emergency at the airport after the terrorist attacks Sept. 11 in New York City and Washington, D.C.
In the future: Also on the agenda will be a discussion about whether it's appropriate for Mahoning County officials to respond to future emergencies at the facility.
"I think it's important for both counties to discuss this, and discuss it openly," said Commissioner Vicki Allen Sherlock. "We have a role in governing the airport, and I think we also have a role to play in an emergency situation."
Sherlock said Mahoning County commissioners have an interest in the airport, even though it's in Trumbull County's Vienna Township.
Mahoning County contributes money to help operate the facility and appoints some members of the Western Reserve Port Authority, which governs the airport.
"There can be no question that we have a vested interest in everything that occurs at the airport," Sherlock said.
Commissioners drew some criticism from Trumbull County officials and the public for going to the airport Sept. 11, when airplanes were ordered to land there by the Federal Aviation Administration in the wake of the terrorist attacks.
Commissioner Ed Reese said they went to offer help to stranded passengers, not to grandstand for the press as some critics suggested. He and Sherlock said commissioners would rather have been home with their families, but they went because airport officials asked them for help.
The concerns: Airport Director Tom Nolan was worried there would not be enough food or restroom supplies to accommodate the 1,500 passengers who were expected to land there, Sherlock said.
Commissioners instructed their facilities management staff to load a van with toiletries and paper products and take them to the airport.
Nolan said about 300 passengers landed at the airport. Some of the passengers remained in the Youngstown area for several days before making other travel arrangements.
Commissioners, along with other officials at the scene, helped to ensure that the stranded passengers were fed and offered them use of their personal cellular telephones to call relatives, Sherlock said.
"I don't think you can go wrong by doing the right thing, and I think we did the right thing that day," she said.
bjackson@vindy.com