I know this sounds like a baby, but here is proof that you never know who may be interested in ORH? I am not saying this Spanish Company would have necessarily been interested in ORH, but the airport administration had a fiduciary responsibility to get the highest return on a City owned asset. There is no excuse why we could not have been trying to privatize the airport via a well-publicized RFP the past three years:
http://www.myfoxmilwaukee.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=2568001&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1
WITI-TV, MILWAUKEE -- A Spanish company is looking at buying Milwaukee's General Mitchell International Airport.But airport authorities say the facility isn't up for lease or sale.Milwaukee County supervisors looked at selling or leasing the county-owned airport last year.They said it could raise money to supplement the budget. And they also thought selling it would mean they wouldn't have to turn it over to a proposed regional airport authority.A study this fall figured a long-term lease of Mitchell could bring in hundreds of millions of dollars over a 50-year period.The Spanish newspaper El Economista reported last month that Grupo Ferrovial, a multinational development corporation, was looking at Mitchell.The company owns BAA, the world's largest airport management company.A new program by the FAA allows up to five U.S. airports to be privatized.The only airport to do so -- Stewart International in New Windsor, New York, is ending its privatization seven years into a 99-year lease
Same Time Next Year
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It’s been nearly a year since I wrote about the problems that come from
having 11 bosses who are not on the same page about anything, as well as
suggestion...
5 months ago
21 comments:
We will probably not get the best deal but lets hope we at least have an airport that we can use and be proud of. Give it away today and lets use it this fall.
Why do you keep saying the Airport Administration has dropped the ball? The Airport is owned by the City of Worcester. The airport administration has no independenyt authority from the City Manager, just like any department of the city.
John:
What exactly are you trying to say?? That the airport administration could not recommend that an RFP to long-term lease or outright sell the airport could not have been recommended?? Of course they can not act independently, but they sure could have recommended an RFP, put togther an RFP, publicized it and collected bids??
Tim, you are right. Although we have no idea what we have left on the table,it will be better off under a long-term lease with MassPort then the current arrangement.
Bill
John:
Let me give you a real estate example. Assume you were owned an apartment building that I managed. After collecting the rents and paying all the bills, it was costing you money every year and was really starting to drain your finances.
I find a person who will lease the building long but pays you practically nothing each year, but agrees to cover any losses during the lease. Your first question would be how did I market your building? Maybe you would about any other offers???
If you told you that I did not market your building and only talked to this one buyer, would you be happy?
To answer john's question, the City of Worcester a.k.a City Manager and City Council have stated in past council meetings they are not EXPERTS when it comes to matters concerning aviation and the Worcester Airport.
They absolutely rely on input,data,and technical expertise from the Airport Director,Airport Commission,Airport Liason , and Massport in an advisory capacity.
I agree with Bill on this point.
That is correct. The Airport Administration and /or Commission can not do anything independent of the city administration.They can not (I have never been in Government, but I am sure) recommend to lease, sell or anything else unless the city manager wants to do it. The reason is obvious, it is not theirs to sell or lease. They don't own the property. It belongs to the city. If you have a tenant on a property you may own, can they lease it if it does not indicate so in your lease with them? The airport certainly can not sell a piece of property they do not own.
John:
??? What did you think of my scenario that I laid out for you???
Now for your last couple of questions.. Why can't the airport administration make a recommendation to lease, sell or close the airport?? Of course they can. They can not act independently and do it, but they can surely recommend it.
Can a tenant you lease property can lease it to someone else. If the actual lease contains a sub-lease, you can.
Of course the airport can not sell a piece of property that they do not own??
udwexaAgain, my recollection of the Community meetings I have attended is that the city has reviewed whether to sell, lease, stay with Massport or keep the property under the City Manager. The recommendation, accepted by the city administration and the City Council was to stay the course and try to continue the dance with Massport in some way. That was to be negotiated by the City Manager. They did look at all options, and based on the numbers from the experts, it came back not to lease or sell. Thus, my point, the City Manager makes those calls- not the lessee the commission or the staff after all has been decided by the powers that be!!
John:
That is exactly my point. Why did we take the word of IMG that there would be nobody interested?? These are the same guys that we have paid over $200,000 to recruit and retain a commercial airline?? How they doing on that??
Bottom line is that we had absolutely nothing to lose by putting out an RFP for the entire airport and who knows maybe there would be a Spanish Company interested??
Back to my real estate analogy. If I had told you that the experts told me nobody would have been interested in your property, that is why I took the deal would you have been happy with me??
Bill
The City Manager accepted the results of the expert he hired. You, the airport staff, the commission, and eveyone else may not agree, but that is what they pay the CM to do. He made that recommendation so that is it. That's my point. You keep saying the airport needs to recommend something the CM has already said he does not want to do. Let's put the responsibility where it should be. We may not agree, but that is the way it is.
John:
First you said the airport administration had no authority to recommend putting out an RFP for the airport. Now you say that we should just "accept the word of the experts hired by the City Manager."
Why bother having an airport commission or community meetings, if we are to just accept the word of the experts?
John, a retired gentleman who lives near the airport (not an employee of the airport or having anything to do with the current airport mgmt), give me one reason why putting an RFP for the entire airport would have been a bad idea???
Bill
John:
When did the CM say he didnt want to put out an RFP to sell/lease the airport to private operators?.......or are you just assuming that b/c were are to "Massport" the place, that by default he is assumed to have not wanterd to RPF the place.
Are you aware that if a private co were to take over the airport it would toss off at least a 1/2 Million dollars in property tax?
Bill & Tim:
You guys are being presumptuous that under massport we'll be better off. I am from Missouri.
Richard F: I disagree that
a. the airport Commission ( all non-avaition laymen?) or
b. the airport Liason ( former teacher, school committeeman and City Planner) or
c. Massport or
d. Mr Waldron
are necessarily experts when it comes to running an airport as a BUSINESS. ORH is supposed to be an enterprise acct which in municipal lingo means a self sustaining venture.
How many years has Worc given these folks to turn that place around. In their defense, but not justification for failure, the place is a hard sell.
Get an operator in there who has paid us 15 or 20 million for that place and just watch it blossom & thrive.
Companies do not put down that kinda of money on the block unless they know what they are doing. Capitalism does work if you give it a chance.
City workers (or Massport) whose only interest is the next union contract, their next paycheck, or their next holiday/sickday just are not capable of makigng ORH a viable enterprise.
So after ORH is handed off to Massport...the next underused/misused city asset that we will discuss will be?????
The Auditorium? The landfill dump? Greenhill?
Jahn:
Per usual, great points... In case you do not realize this yet John is not a retired gentlemen who lives near the airport. He has had various names in the past incluing but limited to "anonymous", Doug and maybe even Sam.
Thanks
Bill
One more thing.. "anonymous", John, Doug or Sam never actually post comments about the blogs or make recommendations like the rest of us.
They only post comments defending the decisions at the airport. They even pretend not to know everything (just nieghbors), but attend every community meeting and make comments that a true "outsider" really would not know.
The Dilbert comic strip once gave a great definition of the word 'consultant'. Catbert was deciding which career path to take when it dawned on him ...." Hmmmm , I like to con people and I like to insult people; if I combine con with insult I get consult !!!" .....Now you know why we are paying so much $$$$$$ to the consultants.
Harry Tembenis
Worcester, MA
Ya , you're right Bill. It got by me when he claims to have attended community meetings that discussed to seell, lease, or "Massport" ORH.... I dont follow these meetings butI am sure there would have been mention of these alleged meetinmgs to sell ORH on thsi site?????
So i guess there's a claim to have atende dmeetings that never existed, at least as far as ameeting that discussed selling ORH????
Jahn:
Anonymous/John/Doug/Sam attended all of these community meetings, I will guaranteed you that. I also guarantee you that he is not a retired gentleman living near the airport who is just taking a passing interest.
Bill
Sounds like the ranks are thinning up at the airport, and they know their jobs are on the line. The blame game is on.
What positions are being cut and how many, exactly?
Massport will just pick up the City employess on their payroll.
Massport hiring those guys.Don't count on it.
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