Over the objections of recreational pilots who worry they are being pushed out of their municipal airport, the Bryan City Council on Tuesday voted to increase airplane hangar rates at Coulter Airfield.
City officials said the changes are largely designed to have the few city residents who use the 36 city hangars pay more for airport operations.
"We are trying to not have the city subsidize the hangar rates," said Councilman Art Hughes.
The staff also said it believes the current rates are too low for the market. Even if some pilots drop their leases, there is a waiting list of 50 people who want to take their place, staff said.
A portion of hangar revenue goes back to airport operations, but some also goes to fund the Bryan Business Council, which works to bring new development and business to the community.
The hangar rate increase comes as the city is adopting a new strategy to expand the airport and attract more private corporate planes. To do so, Bryan would likely need to complete almost $4.5 million in capital improvement projects, including the expansion of its 4,000-foot runway.
"I am 100 percent in favor of these hangar rates and I am 100 percent in favor of our vision for Coulter Field and we want it to be better," Hughes said. "We want it to be something that is not a liability to the city, but an asset."
But a group of pilots has mobilized against the changes. Five people expressed opposition at the meeting and a political action committee called Friends of Coulter Field purchased an advertisement in The Eagle urging residents to oppose Tuesday's vote.
The advertisement asked readers, "Is Coulter Airfield the next Briarcrest?" The question is a reference to how the city considered buying the Briarcrest Country Club and selling the Travis B. Bryan Municipal Golf Course, an idea that was overwhelmingly rejected by voters in November.
"I don't believe the city's vision for Coulter Field is plausible at all," said Robert Barber, who keeps an airplane in a city hangar, at the meeting.
The pilots said that shifting the scope of the airport is unnecessary with Texas A&M's Easterwood Airport less than a mile from the Bryan city limits. And some have questioned whether the increase in hangar rates is the first step in an effort to force them out.
Monthly rates will increase by an average of about $360, or 32 percent. The airport made a $113,943 profit in the 2011 fiscal year, but has lost money in the past, including about $115,359 in 2010. The city has also deferred some needed maintenance and upgrades that will cost more than $2.5 million, even without a runway expansion.
The council voted four to two to approve the change, with Councilman Mike Southerland and Councilman Richard Cortez the two dissenting votes.
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