Booming airport could lead to more business for area

By Patricia Fifield
In an era of hidden fees, $15 surcharge for checked baggage, and on top of that an extra $7 for a pillow and blanket, cars are still parked sporadically throughout the expansive parking lot most with Quebec license plates. The Plattsburgh International Airport located on the former Air force Base is having good business despite a weak economy.
Plattsburgh International Airport opened in the summer of 2007 with the help of $30 million from federal and New York governments. The money was used to build the airport’s passenger terminal, complete with Adirondack Mountain views, a fireplace, its 12,000-foot concrete runway, and parking lots.
“It’s a small airport but it gets the job done,” said Casey Buskey of Plattsburgh, NY. Buskey said he uses the airport because he does not have to travel far to get there.
Convenience and low airfares is key to the airport’s business. City Chamberlain, Richard Marks, said, “From my personal experience flying out of the airport is that it is much more convenient than having to use Burlington or Albany or Montreal.”
The airport offers three airlines Cape Air, Direct Air, and Allegiant Air that fly to Boston, Myrtle Beach, and thee Florida cities. In a weak Plattsburgh economy it may seem difficult to believe the small, local airport can be doing well. 85% of the airport’s business is from Canadian customers. Thomas Long, Airport Manager said that Canadians use the airport during the summer season and even into winter months. When the Canadian business is at its peak, the airport changes its lobby music to French-Canadian pop music to cater to its primary customers.
“Free parking brings them from Canada,” Long said. Quebec resident Mark Bathurst said he uses the airport because he is gone for weeks at time during the summer. “I am gone for a long time so I take advantage of the free parking… Montreal airport would cost me hundreds of dollars,” he explained.
Michelle Powers of the Chamber of Commerce said the airport is growing rapidly and ahead of schedule. “We are at about 60,000 passengers for the year, which is more than we did all of last year,” she said. Powers said the old Clinton County airport on Route 3 only produced 3,000 passengers a year for many years. “You can see how much we’ve grown in just a few years,” she said.
Long joined the Plattsburgh International Airport in March of this year from Baltimore, MD. He said in order to continue with the airport’s success, the Industrial Park next-door needs to gain more businesses.
“Our number one concern is making the buildings more marketable,” Long said. The Industrial Park is currently awaiting a study to be done to see if they are eligible for a grant to go green. Long said the goal is to make the buildings of the Industrial Park more appealing to businesses looking for a home.
If the grant is approved, solar walls will be placed on the buildings. The metal walls have perforated holes in it and when the sun goes through the holes, it heats the building. Energy costs could be greatly dropped and businesses would be more interested in moving their company there. Long said in just one building it can cost $350,000 a year to heat it and if the cost can be cut down to $100,000 companies would be more interested in moving their businesses to the park.
“It will be a domino effect,” Long continued, “bringing more business in the Industrial Park will be beneficial to the Plattsburgh area.” These businesses will need employees, which will bring more jobs to the area where the unemployment rate is at 9.3%. More business and revenue produced at the Industrial Park will also bring more business to the airport. Airlines will have lower costs and more business with the new companies in the area, which will entice the airlines to stay in business with the airport.
Long believes there is a good chance of receiving the grant. “The community did a great job before I got here, I gotta keep it on the same path,” he said. The number one goal is to become self-sufficient and bring more to the area. “If I can develop this it will help support the community and airport,” Long said.