JOHN F. FLOYD COMMENTARY: Airport could be a jewel in Gadsden's crown
Accountability is defined by Webster’s New World Dictionary as “1. Obliged to account for one’s acts; 2. Capable of being accounted for, responsible.”
Gadsden and Etowah County have two organizations in city and county government vital to the success and longevity of our common communities — and I believe both are failing, miserably, the residents and taxpayers of Gadsden and Etowah County.
They are the Gadsden Airport Authority and the Gadsden-Etowah Industrial Development Authority. I believe both are spending hard-earned taxpayer money, with no accountability.
Either the Gadsden Airport Authority is incompetent, or the Northeast Alabama Regional Airport is that shining example of a well-oiled and professionally managed operation. After all, when the GAA can hold a board meeting in 3 or 4 minutes, it makes one believe there are no problems.
The last board meeting went something like this: The chairman called the meeting to order and the roll was called. Having a majority in attendance, the chairman asked if there was any old business. There was silence from the board members. The chairman then asked if there was no old business, was there any new business. Again, silence from the members in attendance. The chairman then said if there was no old business or new business, he called for a motion to adjourn. A motion to adjourn was made, seconded and, again, the meeting was over in 3 or 4 minutes.
The GAA board received its meeting stipend, but that was not the end of the outlay of taxpayer money. The meeting was also attended by the board’s high-priced attorney from Birmingham and by representatives of Neel-Schaffer, a consulting firm that advises the authority on airport operations. Such people usually are paid portal to portal.
The GAA's chairman could have avoided these healthy fees by, if he knew there were no items on the agenda, simply canceling the meeting. There is no accountability for the authority’s actions and it reports to no one, which is a recipe for poor management of taxpayer dollars. But it seems that the City Council is beginning to realize that the city is legally responsible for such expenditures.
Also, the GAA and the Gadsden airport were not included in the recent announcement of Federal Aviation Administration airport grant money by Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Alabama. If the GAA made no requests for funding for any projects, one would assume the airport must be in perfect condition and doesn’t need such funding. I submit that isn't the case.
The most recent grant money totaled more than $12 million and went to 25 airports in Alabama. Much of it went to smaller cities; Wetumpka received $560,000, Sylacauga $300,000, Alexander City $461,000, Jackson $210,000, Ozark $181,00 and Roanoke $150,000, just to name a few.
The Alabama Department of Transportation works with FAA officials and individual airports to develop five-year capital improvement plans for those airports. The airports submit pre-applications for funding through ALDOT, which forwards them to the FAA.
That is work the GAA should have assigned to Neel-Schaffer; did they fall down on the job?
And it reinforces the basic problem with the authority: Except for attorney and experienced pilot Ken Robertson, none of them has any real expertise or experience in administering an airport.
It can’t be a “gang who couldn’t shoot straight” scenario when you don’t shoot at all. The GAA should be actively pursuing such grants at every opportunity; it's received them in the past, with awards in 2019 and 2020 totaling more than $1.06 million to install a vertical visual guidance system, improve drainage and to rehabilitate the airport's beacons and taxiways.
If they aren’t, whether from that lack of expertise or experience or an oversight by them or their consultant, it’s not defensible.
The present GAA board is made up of good people, they are just airport management deficient. I believe they should resign when the new mayor is elected, and he or she should appoint professionals who are interested in the airport’s economic development potential and in making it one of the jewels in Gadsden’s crown. It’s not a place for “good ole’ boys.”
Lance Koury, military pilot and aviation expert, has been calling for a forensic audit of the financial activities of the GAA and the Fixed Base Operation. His pleas have fallen on deaf ears; I’m not sure it’s a bad idea.
John F. Floyd is a Gadsden native who graduated from Gadsden High School in 1954. He formerly was director of United Kingdom manufacturing, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., vice president of manufacturing and international operations, General Tire & Rubber Co., and director of manufacturing, Chrysler Corp. He can be reached at johnfloyd538@gmail.com. The opinions reflected are his own.
This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Airport needs grant money, leaders with expertise
