[JYO] Words from Jim Haynes...

Another way of looking at Crosstrail

Every problem and situation has  several sides and several potential 
solutions.  Key to any situation is  having the correct information and the 
real 
facts.  I respectfully ask that  you consider the following in your 
consideration 
of the Crosstrail property  adjacent to JYO:

The Leesburg Airport has a few problems - the largest of  which is a huge 
financial drain on the Town of Leesburg.  The airport lost  $537,000 in 2005 
which was an increase from $501,000 in 2004.  The Town  Council is concerned 
about 
this.  Some have asked me how this loss could be  turned into a profit, or at 
into least a breakeven situation.  Their  suggestion was that perhaps 
increasing the personal property tax on airplanes to  the same tax rate for 
farm and 
construction equipment, etc., charging landing  fees and other user charges 
might be a solution.  I said I disagreed.   My solution is Crosstrail.

Crosstrail will make it possible for companies  that own business jets to 
locate in the Class A office space that the Peterson  Company is planning to 
develop.  Their executives and employees can live in  Crosstrail, shop in 
Crosstrail, and even walk or bike to work, eat in fine  restaurants, and enjoy 
entertainment.  Think Reston Town Center or  Petersonâs Fair Lakes 
development.  
Neither of these communities is near an  airport, which market research shows 
will 
be a strong selling point to major  corporations.  These are the companies 
that own and operate business  jets.  The Peterson Company has a Gulfstream.

Two hundred or even  300 small airplanes will never make the Leesburg Airport 
profitable.  A few  business jets will.  My business has given me the 
opportunity to work with  almost every major general aviation airport in the US 
and 
many smaller  ones.  I understand what works and what does not.  I have been  
following the Crosstrail development for over a year and have studied it  
carefully.  I am convinced it will be the biggest boost to the airport  since I 
negotiated the deal to bring the Flight Service Station to the airport  the 
early 
1980s.  The Flight Service Station will be gone in  February.

The Peterson Companies does not want to see the airport  stagnate or close as 
some have suggested.  The airport is a key part of  their marketing plan.  
Bringing major companies to our community will make  the Leesburg Airport a 
center for business aviation.  No longer will we  have to wait 16 years for 
life-saving improvements like a glide slope and a  control tower.

Through the fence operations can be very successful if  managed correctly.  I 
have seen it work very well and not work well.   I can say the same for 
airport management.

Noise and safety are two other  issues that are being misrepresented.  As 
pilots you know that you do not  fly inside the Greenway on a downwind to 35.  
Your downwind leg is west of  the Greenway.  An occasional plane may fly over 
the airport to the downwind  for 17, but this is rare and not the standard 
pattern.  These planes would  be above pattern altitude and below the Class B 
airspace.  You also know  that an off-airport landing or accident is extremely 
rare.  This has never  happened on the Crosstrail property, at least in the 
last 
30 years that I can  attest to.  Lawn mowers in Crosstrail will make more noise 
than  airplanes.  Noise contours compiled by the FAA confirm this.

I urge  everyone who has any interest in the Leesburg Airport to spend the 
time to study  the facts as I have done.  You are welcome to disagree with me, 
but please  do so with knowledge and not just with emotion and conjecture.

Finally a  personal note - I spent 12 years of my life managing and 
developing the Leesburg  Airport on a full-time basis.  I did it 24/7.  It was 
my only  
job.  I poured hundreds of thousands of dollars of my own money  transforming 
the airport from a bankrupt recreational airfield into an airport  capable of 
handling business jets.  This airport is in my blood.  No  one wants it to 
succeed more than I do.  I will do everything I can to  ensure success.

Jim Haynes
_jhaynes@xxxxxxxxxxxx (mailto:jhaynes@xxxxxxxxxxx) 
 
 
(703)  777-4142

GIF image

Other related posts: