MAHONING COUNTY Officials will pay $75,000 to airport

Mahoning commissioners said they matched Trumbull's contribution because it's a partnership.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Mahoning County commissioners will follow the lead of their Trumbull County colleagues when it comes to funding the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport.
But commissioners don't want to fully pull the rug out from under the facility, to which both counties contribute.
Each county contributes money to the airport each year to help offset its operating costs. They still owe about $150,000 apiece this year.
Trumbull County commissioners announced earlier this week that they were giving $75,000 of that, and would withhold the rest pending a meeting with airport officials to discuss the Vienna Township facility's financial situation.
Mahoning County commissioners will match that contribution at their next meeting, Dec. 5, said Commissioner Ed Reese.
He acknowledged that the county had pledged twice that amount, but said Mahoning is keeping in step with its neighbors to the north.
"It's a partnership," said Commissioner Vicki Allen Sherlock. "One needs to do what the other does."
Trumbull County commissioners also said they want assurance that the Western Reserve Port Authority, which oversees airport operation, is seeking an airline to locate there.
David Ludt, a Mahoning County commissioner, agreed with that position.
He said if the county already has $75,000 set aside for the airport, he'll go along with the contribution. But if it requires dipping into the general fund, he'll vote against it.
"I think we have to draw a line in the sand," Ludt said. "Until they can show me some planes or progress out there, no new money as far as I'm concerned."
A different view
But Sherlock said it's not feasible to bank on an airline's locating there, and she thinks both counties should come up with the rest of the money they've pledged.
"How can you just pull that kind of money out from under them?" she said, noting that the port authority has already budgeted the money.
She said the port authority must find new ways to generate income for the airport and lessen its dependency on the two counties to subsidize its operation.
Sherlock suggested that an air park be developed similar to ones at smaller airports, where individuals and companies with private aircraft can land and house their planes.
Charging those people rental fees for hangar space would be a source of revenue that could help lead to other development and decrease the counties' need to dole out operating money each year.
"My goal is to reduce that subsidy. That's the key," Sherlock said. "I think we will always have to contribute something to the airport, but we need to get it down to a lower amount."
She said statistics from the Federal Aviation Administration indicate that there are 187 airplanes registered to owners from Mahoning County, and 194 in Trumbull County.
bjackson@vindy.com