VIENNA U.S. Rep Ryan pushes for air base expansion

'Operation Air Base' will get under way shortly.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Now that the airport funding issue appears to be settled, U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan said he wants to move full speed ahead with an effort not only to keep the Youngstown Air Reserve Station off the 2005 federal base closing list, but also to seek an expansion there.
"We didn't know what direction we were going before last week, and now we can move forward with the local campaign," said Ryan, of Niles, D-17th.
After much debate, Mahoning County commissioners agreed last week to give $100,000 from the county's economic development fund to the Western Reserve Port Authority, which runs the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport.
Also, commissioners are pursuing $50,000 from Youngstown/Mahoning County Convention & amp; Visitors Bureau, and there is discussion in the state Legislature about allowing counties to increase the lodging tax to fund port authorities. If that happens, Mahoning County officials would no longer have to worry about where to get money to fund the airport.
"It was beautiful how everyone worked together," Ryan said Monday. "It's a sign of things to come as far as local politicians' working together to address the challenges we face."
Mahoning County funding allows organizers of "Operation Air Base" to start planning a strategy to keep the air base off the closure list, Ryan said.
"There will be significant outreach to all communities," Ryan said of the effort that will be modeled after the successful "Bring It Home" campaign to keep General Motors in Lordstown.
Seeks meeting
Among Ryan's first plans of action is to meet with James G. Roche, secretary of the Air Force, to discuss the local base. "We want to get on his radar screen," Ryan said. "We want to make sure he knows the role the base played in the last war and the importance of its aerial spray unit."
That the Air Force, Navy and Marines all have a presence at the air base is a benefit because military officials favor joint facilities, he said.
"My goal is to see the air base expand," Ryan said.
The port authority asked for $182,000 from Mahoning and Trumbull counties. Trumbull already pledged that amount.
Ryan and others contend that the survival of the Vienna-based airport is vital to the success of the nearby air base. Airport supporters say the federal government might place the reserve station on its 2005 base closure list because of concerns about local support for the airport.
The air base employs more than 2,000 and contributes about $86 million annually to the local economy.
skolnick@vindy.com