Bryan County is preparing to develop its very own airport, but first, local officials must appoint members to the newly established Richmond Hill-Bryan County Airport Authority.
The bill that established the airport authority and tasked it with developing and operating new airports and landing fields stipulates that the panel will be composed of 11 members, who must be appointed by June 30.
On Tuesday, Bryan County’s commissioners, the Bryan County Development Authority, and the Richmond Hill mayor and city council met to discuss the new legislation, which was signed into law by Governor Brian Kemp on May 1.
The Richmond Hill city manager and the Bryan County manager — or their respective designees — are guaranteed a seat on the airport authority. Bryan County’s Board of Commissioners and Richmond Hill’s City Council are each authorized to appoint two members every year and will take turns appointing a third member every other year. Bryan County’s legislative delegation will appoint the remaining four members, who are not required to be residents of Bryan County.
At Tuesday’s meeting, members of the development authority expressed disappointment that the bill did not give them any appointment power. Development authority officials said they hope the legislative delegation will appoint two members that they nominate.
The legislation stipulates that any airports established by the authority will be available for public use but will not provide any scheduled passenger flights, as a commercial airport would.
According to Trip Addison, vice chairman of the Bryan County Development Authority, any property that will be at the airport – such as aircraft or hangars – will be subject to Georgia’s personal property tax, which will bring a “windfall” of revenue to the local school board. The development authority has also contracted the Georgia Institute of Technology to conduct analysis on the potential economic impact of the proposed airport, Addison said, to prove that its establishment will benefit the region.
“This is not a popular option with the public at all,” Gene Wallace, one of Bryan County’s commissioners, said about the airport. “So I think we’re going to have to do a real good job of educating those folks why this is a good thing for Bryan County.”
However, before any construction of the airport can begin, Georgia’s Department of Transportation must conduct a study to verify the necessity of a new airport in the region and to approve the proposed location, which Addison said will take about a year to complete. Holt Consulting Company, an engineering firm that specializes in aviation consulting, has already conducted a justification and feasibility study on behalf of the local governing bodies to confirm the need for an additional airport in Coastal Georgia.
Mark Counts, Holt’s aviation planning manager, said that there is clear demand for an airport in Bryan County based on the number of locally owned aircraft. According to the Federal Aviation Administration’s aircraft registration database, Bryan County is home to 32 aircraft. Across Georgia, Counts said, there is more demand for hangar space than what currently exists.
According to Counts, Holt is considering five sites across Bryan County for the airport, although he did not specify where any of the sites are. Holt is expected to make its specific site recommendation by late June or early July, Counts said. The legislation also allows the authority to request the city or county use eminent domain to acquire any private property it deems necessary for the airport.
Should the proposed airport receive Federal Aviation Administration approval after the state’s study, the project would receive 90 percent of its construction funding from federal sources, with the remaining 10 percent split between local and state governments. Addison expects the state to provide another five percent, which would leave the Richmond Hill-Bryan County Airport Authority on the hook for the remaining five percent.
The new bill authorizes the airport authority to issue revenue bonds and lease its property out in order to generate the revenue it needs to fund its contribution to the development of the airport.
Local state Rep. Ron Stephens (R-164), who sponsored the bill, confirmed that the airport would not put any additional costs on Bryan County’s taxpayers.
Counts estimated that the development of the airport will take four to five years to complete.
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