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This is Commissioner Steiner’s last month on the commission. We appreciate your time with us and wish you well on your future ventures.
 

Moved by Robert Hanovich, seconded by Kolby White

Vote: 6 - 0 - Unanimously

Councilmember Matthews shared the following update:
The City is currently doing a comprehensive review of zoning codes and land use regulations. Residents within city limits are encouraged to review proposed zoning changes, as they will affect property use and unit allowances once approved. Currently, the City has limited control over short-term rentals (e.g., VRBO, Airbnb), noting that state law limits local regulation. The City requires rental licenses and a 24-hour contact for each listing, with periodic checks by City staff who do a spot check for new listings. Complaints from neighbors help identify issues, though enforcement options remain limited. The City continues to lobby the state for more local control.
City Council is also currently reviewing the City’s Regional Plan, which will be up for approval next year.
 

Enplanements

March was significantly up from 2024 for enplanements with a 24% increase and our third-highest March ever, which really says something as we currently only have one carrier compared to several past years where we had two. April’s numbers were also up over last year with a 12% increase over 2024, but a little closer to what we expect.

Unfortunately, we may be seeing lower numbers of available seats starting in May as there is a reduction in flights. The airline industry is reacting broadly to economic indices, and we are seeing a lot of airlines downgrade and retiring aircrafts early. The numbers nationally are an expected 8% fewer seats in service this July than there were this time last year.

Commissioner Jackson asked about Dallas flights and only having one daily flight available. Director Gall responded, flights available vary month to month, in the summer months. Traditionally, we've only had one flight to Dallas, this is due to the density altitude in Flagstaff. When temperatures are warmer, it is harder for them to take off with the amount of gas they must take to get to Dallas.

Commissioner Jackson also wondered how enplanements track regarding total seat availability. This information is currently not compiled on a month-to-month basis but is something staff will work on putting together and bring to a future meeting.
 
Total Operations

Operations were extremely high compared to last year, up 71% and April's operations were up 11% from 2024.
This year was relatively snow-free compared to some of our previous years, better flying weather brings more visiting aircrafts as well as increases local base flying.
 
Parking Revenue

Revenue was down 16% in March and down 10% in April. As we can see, enplanements and parking revenue do not track in a parallel manner, and we do not see a strong correlation between the two.

Currently, about 60% of our passenger traffic originates outside of Flagstaff, which are people traveling here as their destination and then going back home. Only about 40% of our passenger traffic are people that are in the region that are flying out of Flagstaff and could potentially be using our parking lot.
 
Fuel Flow

Fuel flow was up 38% from 2024 in March which tracks with our increase in operations. Unfortunately, April’s fuel report is not out in time for this month’s meeting.
 

None. Wiseman was unavailable to present any updates.

Express Visitor Center

• Work began on time and construction started on 3/24/25
• The old wrap on the wall was removed, and it has been re-texturized and re-painted, and we will be installing a slat wall for merchandise.
• We were able to get two sewer connections installed for the coffee makers that sit between the Express Visitor Center and the micro market.
• Work should be completed by the end of May.

 
SREB

• Airport staff and design team met in Feb. with the FAA to finalize eligible items. Following this, staff and design team met to discuss project cost reduction / right sizing.
• We have settled on a smaller footprint to house existing equipment only with an option for future expansion. This reduced square footage from 25K to 16K
• We had to remove administrative spaces and associated mechanical systems and revise building materials and finishes.
• The design team is working on a revised concept and associated costs with a new projected cost (current design) of $19.5M; reduced from the previous $33M estimate.
  • Our current FAA Grants available are $9M to $13M

 
Commissioner Shouse expressed concern over the overall cost of the construction of this facility and asked if the airport had gone out to bid for this project.  
Airfield Maintenance Phase VI

• The project is to correct deficits identified during the part 139 inspection:
  • Rubber on the existing pavement markings on the runway
  • Repaint hold position markings (A1)
  • Blast Pad – large thermal cracks with vegetation growing in the cracks
  • Ramp lighting – Three fixtures are not working
  • Signage along the perimeter roadway (RSA notifications)
• Work done during nightly runway closures is expected to begin in mid-June with an anticipated completion in late July.

 ADOT Airport Pavement Management Systems Warranty Items

• The rubber removal project was completed in fall 2023.
• Warranty items that needed to be corrected were identified in fall 2024.
• Repairs are to be completed in June or July with local closures of Taxiway A being very likely.

KAFF News Radio Interviews

• Claire Harper and Brian Gall spoke on the Jeff Kennedy show (93.5FM) on Friday, May 2
• Topics discussed included:
  • Airport 2024 recap
    • This was the airports fourth-highest year ever for enplanements.
    • A record year for us in terms of a low number of cancellations with only eight canceled departures for the year.
  • New micro-markets and coffee kiosks
  • Air service attraction efforts
  • Transportation Security Administration Real ID deadline and implementation (May 7)

 
Chair Waddell asked staff how we see the market at this time with all the current events going on in the aviation industry.

Airport staff brought back the Airport Parking Rates and Fees discussion that was originally presented back in January. During the first round of discussion, additional fees for a Lost Parking Ticket and Monthly Rate were accepted by the airport commission, but fee increases that would go into effect in July 2026 had been tabled with the request for additional data and conversations on items such as land use and other airport concessions that have been presented on over the past few months.
 
Current rates were adopted by Council in 2021 but did not officially go into effect until that paid parking system was installed in 2023. These rates start at $2.00 an hour after the first hour (free in both lots) up to the daily rate of $8.00 for the terminal lot and $6.00 for the economy lot; with a discount for vehicles that stay for over a week with a weekly rate of $48.00 for the terminal lot and $36.00 for the economy lot; which was calculated as 6 x daily rate (giving 1 free day per week).
 
Our proposed increases would increase the terminal lot by $2.00 per day, bringing it from $8 to $10 per day, and a change of $1.00 for the economy lot, bringing that lot from $6 a day to $7.00 per day. Our weekly and monthly rates would increase proportionally, giving the same discounts as they currently offer. (Proposed increases are listed in red on the chart below.)
 

 
The new rates proposed were calculated as follows:

• Monthly rate = 5 x daily rate (2 free days per week)
• Lost ticket fee = 1.5 weeks of parking
• Proposed Terminal Lot Increase = 5.6% annual increase since adoption
• Proposed Economy Lot Increase = 3.7% annual increase since adoption
• Weekly rate = 6 x daily rate (1 free day per week)

 Airport staff worked compiling data to make a reasonable and comparable calculation for these rates. Comparable airports we looked at included Prescott, Yuma, Montrose, St. George, Durango La Plata, Mesa Gateway, Tucson International and Phoenix Sky harbor.



 These comparisons have variations in size, distance from terminal buildings, regional vs international airports, but they give a pretty good idea of the prices being charged within Arizona and other neighboring airports of a more comparable market and size.
 
One of the questions that came up when we previously discussed was what effect the increased parking fees could have on enplanements.



Paid Parking went into effect in July 2023, and we saw a 7% increase in enplanements from 2023 to 2024, with 2024 being our 4^th highest enplanement year ever with service from a single carrier.
 
A few other important data points to note include:

• 60% of our commercial passenger traffic originates outside of Flagstaff, meaning people who don't live in the Flagstaff or Northern Arizona region but rather are traveling here and flying back home.
• In 2024, 66% of customers parked in the Terminal Lot and 34% in the Economy Lot.
• Total parking utilized is typically 30-40% but exceeds 50% on holidays.
• Enplanements in Q1 2025 were up 11% from Q1 2024 and up 2% from Q1 2023 (before paid parking).

 
Commissioner Shouse voiced his concern in a price increase leading to lower utilization of the airport parking lot and inadvertently lowering revenue rather than keeping the rates as is or lowering them in order to keep utilization steady or even increasing closer to a 100% goal.
Chair Waddell called a vote requesting a motion to approve the rates as presented today.

Moved by Robert Hanovich, seconded by David Steiner
Vote: 3 - 2 

As a commercial service airport, we issue security access credentials to anyone who needs un-escorted access to the airfield or unsecured areas or secured areas of the terminal. Our badges are broken down into two categories of security badges. One is our AOA badge or an Air Operations Area badge, which is for everything within the airfield excluding the areas that are for commercial passenger service. The second one is our SIDA or Secure Identification Display Area, which allows access into commercial service space beyond the TSA checkpoint and the area immediately around the commercial aircraft boarding area.
 
We issue about 135 AOA badges and about 90 SIDA or sterile area badges annually and there is currently no limit to the number of badges that can be issued to any of our tenants. This includes an unlimited number for airline staff as well as for anyone renting a hangar from us. There's no limit to how many people they can sponsor to have a badge for their aircraft storage unit.

Right now, there is no fee for badges, and we're the only commercial service airport in the state of Arizona that does not charge. Below is a table showing our annual cost for providing those badges. This includes staff time, supplies, postage, which is a part of the system that we send fingerprints off to the federal government for background checks for SIDA and sterile badges, fingerprinting fees, including the enrollment system that we enroll every batch holder into which alerts us of certain criminal charges that may come up in the future.
 

 
For AOA badges, our costs are about $86 for an initial $33 for a renewal. SIDA and sterile badges are about $177 for an initial and $125 for each renewal and lost badges end up costing about $74.
 
Staff again worked on collecting data from other airports within Arizona and surrounding areas.
 
 
 
The airport is proposing separate fees for an initial credential versus a renewal with a goal of recovering all the material costs and a portion of the labor cost. We would also include a built-in rate increase in about a two (2) year time period as costs continue to increase.


 
Commissioner Hanovich expressed concern over charging contractors, wondering if a badge cost would just end up being passed back on to the airport at the cost of the work they are completing.  
Commissioner White asked how long a badge lasts and the reasoning behind the increasing lost badge fee.  
Commissioner Steiner asked about the background check, asking if this is a new requirement and if there are cost increases to the fee.  
Chair Waddell asked who is currently absorbing this cost and if there are shorter-term badges provided, such as a 3-month badge for contractors.  
Commissioner Hanovich requested airport staff include an exemption for contractors that are operating contracts that are directly supporting the airport. Staff agreed to bring this item back in our next meeting for a vote after a final review.

 

Motion to cancel next months meeting.
Moved by Andrew Shouse, seconded by David Steiner
Vote: 5 - 0 - Unanimously

Moved by Robert Hanovich, seconded by Andrew Shouse

Vote: 5 - 0 - Unanimously