Thurston county residents continued to express unease during the fourth, and last public open house for the Olympia Regional Airport Master Plan held on October 12.
“To stop at informing and consulting is just an insult to the people who support this port and live in this community. Maybe reconsider on that and reach out and collaborate more, both in this process and in future ones,” said resident Sharon Coons.
Project manager Leah Whitfield said they were currently in the “inform and consult” stage of the Airport Master Plan Update process. Residents, however, criticized the Port for not doing enough to engage with them.
Another resident named John messaged the Port, asking why taxpayers, neighborhood associations, and private citizens of Thurston County were not included as stakeholders on the technical advisory committee of the Airport Master Plan Update when users of the airport were included on this committee.
There were also continued concerns over the health and environmental impact of the airport.
Resident Bob Jacobs and a person who identified as Johanson appealed that military helicopters should not land at the airport.
“They are so loud, and they fly very low and very slow. I think we should have a policy to severely control those. The Army has plenty of space up in the air airfields that they own,” Jacobs suggested.
Resident Sue Danver expressed her concern about the potential impact of the airport on migratory birds. “I saw a flock of snow geese above the eastern route edge of Capital Forest… They fly north-south, about five miles from Olympia Regional Airport. A graphic of presumed flight paths would be helpful,” Danver said.
Whitfield said that the Port of Olympia and Tumwater is working on the Bush Prairie Habitat Conservation Plan, which aims to protect and mitigate the impact of the airport on species that are protected by the Endangered Species Act.
Port’s plans
The Port of Olympia presented its preferred development alternative for the Olympia Regional Airport’s commercial air service area during a public open house for the Airport Master Plan Update.
Darren Murata, a supporting engineer for the project and a sub-consultant from DOWL Incorporated, presented the layout plan of the preferred alternative, which consists of the commercial air service area located on the northwest side of the airport.
The layout shows short-term and long-term parking, which collectively consist of 600 parking lots and will feature stalls for electric vehicle charging. Murata said that they might also explore solar canopies on top of these parking lots.
Near the existing air traffic control tower will be three helipad-like areas called vertiports which will be used for the takeoff of electric vertical take-off-and-landing (eVTOL) aircraft, an emerging electric aircraft technology that takes off and lands vertically.
The layout also shows a designated spot for aircraft de-icing on the east side of the apron. Further north, there are areas for potential cargo, ground support facilities, and aviation-related industries.
Whitfield explained that the development alternative is part of a feasibility study that aims to serve as a preliminary evaluation of the airport's compatibility to meet requirements set by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for regional commercial service.
“We're really focused on the feasibility of what the existing airfield can accommodate, especially in regard to the emerging aircraft that are coming in the future,” Whitfield said.
The study also consists of a passengers and operations forecast. Senior aviation planner Zach Duvall said that by 2040, they anticipate supporting 288,00 annual passengers and 12,800 operations. The forecast projects that 38% of operations will be on electric or hybrid-electric aircraft, 32% will be on eVTOLs, 20% will be on regional jets, and 10% will be using light transport.
The feasibility study will be appended to the Airport Master Plan Update, which is a bigger study that looks at the airport's short-, medium-, and long-term development plans to meet future aviation demands. The FAA, which funds the project, requires an update from airports about every decade.
Airport Senior Manager Warren Hendrickson said, “Our overall goals throughout the entire airport Master Plan Update have been to meet aviation demands as required by the FAA, meet FAA design standards, and prepare the Olympia Regional Airport for future development.”
The Port aims to publish a draft of the Master Plan Update by February for public review and comment.
5 comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here
Southsoundguy
This is how government will ruin this community. There is no demand for all this, it is a real estate racket.
Saturday, October 15, 2022 Report this
Scooter
Change, like growth, is inevitable so why not make suggestions/recommendations that mitigate the downsides. And, aviation in the future will most likely be much different than it is today so let's start on a plan now instead of being late to the party.
Saturday, October 15, 2022 Report this
Southsoundguy
Change is not positive by default, that is a fallacy. The goal of the government and port authority is to radically change the nature and character of the community. It will not benefit people who have been living here and value the community and environment as it has been. Permitting this type of “change” and accepting it as a default is the same as saying, “we don’t care about the community so long as outside interests with lots of money promise us tax revenue growth.” This is mal-governance.
Sunday, October 16, 2022 Report this
Scooter
Don't believe I implied or stated that change was necessarily good. All I am saying is that change, driven by growth, will occur, like it or not. So, why not be a change agent and see what you can do to manage/mitigate the effects.
Monday, October 17, 2022 Report this
TonyW33
When that airport was sited and built it made sense where it was and for the intended purpose, AT THAT TIME. It no longer serves any commercial purpose. It is unwise to expand it for commercial service. That was the vote of the Port of Olympia commissioners in 2020, no expansion at all. Now all of a sudden the plan reappears all fleshed out and it would seem that someone is still pushing for this really lame approach to air traffic here. Wonder which commissioner that would be?
Tuesday, October 18, 2022 Report this