PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) -- A new study shows more than a million travelers might use New Hampshire's Portsmouth International Airport if it were to expand.
The airport commissioned a consultant's study to identify how to build the airport. It recommends adding chartered international flights, increasing the number of low-cost flights and creating a time-sharing program for corporate jets.
Airport leaders say they're open to those suggestions.
SkyBus, a new low-budget airline, announced last month it would flying in and out of the airport. The study was commissioned before SkyBus made its announcement.
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Information from: New Hampshire Union Leader, http://www.unionleader.com
7 comments:
Front page of today's Boston Herald (07/03/07)...
Vegas on I-495: Sands mas seeks gambling resort
By Scott Van Voorhis
Boston Herald Business Reporter
Tuesday, July 3, 2007 - Updated: 04:23 AM EST
Gambling tycoon Sheldon Adelson, who grew up poor in Dorchester and has become one of the world’s richest men, is drafting plans for an extravagant gambling resort in Boston’s outer suburbs and recently made his pitch to Gov. Deval Patrick’s administration.
Adelson, whose Las Vegas Sands Corp. oversees gambling resorts stretching from the Vegas strip to the resort city of Macau on China’s coast, wants to make the Bay State the latest addition to his global casino empire, industry executives and others familiar with his plans said.
Adelson, who in the past has expressed interest in building a resort casino west of Boston near Interstate 495, is now focusing his attention on the Marlboro area, one executive said.
Adelson, who has a home in Newton, huddled recently with Secretary of Housing and Economic Development Dan O’Connell, spokeswoman Kofi Jones confirmed.
O’Connell is overseeing a review of whether the Bay State should legalize casino gambling. Gov. Patrick is expected to make a decision later this summer.
“He came in and offered his ideas on how the commonwealth could benefit from expanded gambling,” Jones said. “He addressed some of the economic impacts associated with the gaming industry. We met with him as we have met with people on all sides of the issue and continue to.”
Adelson, whose newly unveiled $2.2 billion Venetian Macau will feature 20,000 luxury hotel rooms, is interested in a full-scale casino resort, one with everything from hotels and restaurants to spacious gambling facilities, industry executives and others said.
The gambling chief believes that such a casino, placed near Interstate 495, would be best poised to draw the widest possible customer base from across New England, including gamblers who now travel to Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun, executives familiar with his thinking said.
Back in 2002, Adelson told a panel of state lawmakers he was prepared to build a $1.5 billion resort casino. At that time, he mentioned an abandoned racetrack in Westboro as an ideal location.
Such local knowledge may seem surprising, but the casino magnate is no stranger to the area. The son of a Dorchester taxicab driver, Adelson sold newspapers on the street corner to bring in extra money. Today he sits atop a $26 billion fortune, one of the world’s largest.
Adelson’s bold pitch comes as the gambling issue gains momentum on Beacon Hill.
State Treasurer Tim Cahill has proposed selling off one or more casino licenses to private casino developers. Meanwhile, the newly recognized Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe is pursuing its own plans to build a $1 billion casino in Southeastern Massachusetts.
Harry Tembenis
Worcester, MA
PS
Remember this lil' piece I wrote in Worcester Magazine back on 06/29/06?
Big winners
This is an open letter to Allegiant Airlines, the Worcester Area Chamber of Commerce, the Picknelly family and the Worcester City Council.
To Allegiant Airlines: Thank you for giving our airport an opportunity to be serviced by your airline.
To the Picknelly family: Thank you for seeing the opportunities available in downtown Worcester by your involvement in new hotel development, and also servicing Worcester with your Peter Pan bus lines and eventually occupying the new bus port at Union Station.
To the Worcester City Council and Chamber of Commerce: Please continue partnering and working with such visionaries as Allegiant and the Picknellys.
One overlooked area that could benefit ALL of the participants mentioned is the possibility of using Allegiant Airlines as Worcester County’s gateway to the West. If Allegiant were to offer ORH to LAS (Las Vegas’s McCarran International Airport) direct flights, this would open up an opportunity for Worcester County travelers to have access to more than 40 airlines for connecting flights throughout the world, not to mention the Las Vegas (direct) travelers alone. With Allegiant’s Orlando/Worcester flights averaging approximately 80% loads, the Las Vegas flights could potentially be closer to 100% loads on a consistent basis. This could also benefit the reverse commute as well — Las Vegas to Worcester. With so many Las Vegas residents employed by casinos, it would allow them the opportunity to also visit casinos — albeit in Connecticut — and they could stay for a fraction of the price than staying on the casino properties by staying in Worcester County area hotels/motels and utilizing the Picknelly family’s bus services for day trips to the Connecticut casinos in addition to ANY New England destination, right from Worcester via the bus/train service that will be offered at Union Station.
These travelers would be able to get to any destination in New England from one central location: Worcester. Cape Cod, Boston, skiing, fall foliage, New England colleges, etc., would all be available to Las Vegas residents. The Connecticut casinos do a tremendous volume of business from Worcester County residents. Just imagine the possibility of that same gaming market having access to Las Vegas; the demand would be absolutely incredible. Aviation buffs remember Pan American World Airways made history with their “Clipper” flights, which gave them worldwide recognition as the pioneer in international flights. Allegiant could stand to make history with the ORH to LAS route, being the “Casino Clipper” route unifying Las Vegas with Foxwoods/ Mohegan Sun. The biggest winners? Allegiant, the Picknelly family, local hotels, restaurants, nightclubs and city coffers.
Harry Tembenis
Worcester
...which now adds a whole new dimension to the whole ORH issue....rather than sell ORH to Massport-o-let for pennies on the dollar(that whole deal still stinks!), RFP the whole thing to Sheldon Adelson !!!! After all, the high rollers need airports to fly in and out of !!!
Harry Tembenis
Worcester, MA
...aren't you all thrilled to have me post here and have access to my dementia?!?!?!?!?
Harry Tembenis
Worcester, MA
Harry:
I would rather read your ideas then those of high paid consultants that telling us absolutely nothing and are completely unaccountable. In addition you have better ideas.
Bill
Now we just need to figure out how these ideas become reality...
How do we transmit these ideas to the movers and shakers (such as Adelson)?
Does anybody know if the people who run the airport know/read this blog? Man its been a while since I last posted.
Dave:
I have a tracker on this and I can tell by the ISP that the City of Worcester reads this blog.
Good to see you again.
Bill
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