First, our Airport makes a positive impact on our city in numerous ways:
A) The Airport serves as the gateway to our City by air. Over the last decade, East Venice Avenue has been groomed by our City to be the automotive gateway to Venice.
WITHOUT QUESTION, VNC SERVES AS A SIMILAR GATEWAY TO OUR CITY BY AIR
Our Airport serves as an “interchange” in the United States National Air Transportation System – the NASA 21st Century “Highway in the Sky” as well as the Florida Intermodal Transportation System. It is not merely a “hobby” airport.
The aircraft that come & go from our Airport leave dollars behind… many bring Venetians home!
Critics of the Airport would have you believe that this is an “intrusion” into our city… we submit it simply isn’t so.
B) Jobs. Undisputedly, the Airport creates jobs. There are people that work in Airport administration and maintenance, people that work in aircraft service and repair, people that work in aviation training, people that work in food service and hospitality and people that work in law enforcement… and these are just the jobs created directly at the Airport. This does not begin to address the “spin off jobs” created by the Airport.
Airport critics would have you believe that these jobs don’t matter… we submit that in today’s uncertain economy our City and region desperately need every job we can develop.
C) Dollars. As indicated above, patrons of our Airport contribute to our local economy. They buy fuel (which the City receives a royalty on), they buy maintenance services, they buy aircraft equipment and accessories, they eat in our restaurants, they stay in our hotels, they shop in our stores, they are students of our flight schools, they rent apartments, they go to our churches, they buy homes and become our neighbors, they even patronize the Municipal Golf Course. Again, these are merely the direct economic contributions made by the Airport. This does not begin to address the “spin off” effect of economic impact of the Airport.
Critics of the Airport seek to marginalize these contributions by arguing that estimates made in the past were too high.
Argue about the numbers if you will, however, the positive economic impact to our City is in the millions of dollars.
Ask any merchant or service provider how they would fare without the seasonal visitors.
D) Emergency Preparedness. If there is any doubt in your mind as to the benefit our Airport would provide in the case of a natural disaster all one need do is look to our south to the Punta Gorda Airport (“PGD”). During Hurricane Charlie the PGD Airport was pivotal in aiding the victims of this destructive storm. The Airport served as a staging area for relief supplies and services to help the residents and business owners cope in the aftermath of the catastrophie.
Again Airport critics argue that our Airport would contribute little to such a disaster relief effort. We think the evidence is to the contrary. You decide!
E) Missions of mercy. Every year, pilots at the Airport fly disadvantaged medical patients, wounded veterans and their families for medical treatments that they could not afford to seek out due to the transportation costs… all free of charge on a voluntary basis.
Additionally, we are privileged that Agape Flights has chosen our Airport to serve as its home. This organization is well known as a lifeline for missionary families in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Each year the missionaries affiliated with Agape Flights touch nearly 1,000,000 lives.
Second, our City has made a permanent commitment to our Airport. Anyone who lives in Venice Florida knows that one of the town’s main geographic features is the Venice Municipal Airport. Most, in fact, understand that our Airport was originally the Venice Army Air Base of World War II, and that it was deeded to the City of Venice after the Great War ended.
Few however, understand, or are even aware of, the circumstances surrounding what was deeded to the City, and more importantly, under what terms the US Government conditioned the transfers.
When the US Government transferred the Airport to the City of Venice it was done so by way of a number of “Quit Claim Deeds”. Each contained the following language and conditions:
“BY THE acceptance of this deed…. the said party of the second part [the City of Venice] for itself, its successors and assigns agrees that transfer of the property…. is accepted subject to the following restrictions…. which shall run with the land….”
“(1) That all of the property transferred hereby…. called the “airport”, shall be used for public airport purposes, and only for such purposes, on reasonable terms and without unjust discrimination and without grant or exercise of any exclusive right for use of the airport…”
“(2) That the entire landing area…. of the airport shall be maintained at all times in good and serviceable condition to assure its efficient operation….”
These assurances “run with the land” which simply means they are perpetual in nature and cannot be abrogated by the Airport Sponsor without serious consequences.
Put another way, the City made a deal with the People of the United States to take title to the Airport subject to the terms and conditions in the deeds and a deal is a deal.
As of the date of this writing, the Airport is fairly financially self-sufficient with respect to day to day operations. Grant assistance is still needed from the FAA and FDOT for capital improvement projects. Such grants typically pay for about 97.5% of such projects. Recently, a number of ideas advanced by airport critics might result in a shift in the finances of the Airport thus causing the City taxpayers to be required to foot the bill. Contrary to what you might have read in the newspapers or heard from neighbors, these obligations cannot be avoided by City Council Resolution or voter referendum.
Accordingly, all City residents should take note of any actions taken by the City or Airport critics which might move to diminish use of the Airport as an Airport, disrupt City maintenance of the Airport or be construed as unjustly discriminating against any type of user of the Airport.