John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport Hangar Construction to Begin This Month; Negotiations Planned With Tenants
Jul. 20—JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — Construction work is expected to begin later this month on a two-unit corporate hangar at John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport, and both bays will likely have tenants by the time the work is completed, Airport Manager Cory Cree said.
Cree told authority members that two prospective tenants have expressed interest in the 4,000-square-foot hangars at the Richland Township airport.
It prompted the authority to draft agreements that would let tenants lease each unit for two-year periods beginning in January.
The lease agreement lists a monthly rate of $1,500 through 2025, but allows for automatic renewals every two years at adjusted rates, beginning with a $1,600 monthly rate in 2026, the document shows.
Cree said airport officials will retain the right to terminate the lease at the end of each two-year term.
The airport will also require tenants to seek authority approval before subleasing the space to other tenants, airport Solicitor Tim Leventry said.
As designed, the insulated hangars will offer heating systems and private restrooms, among other amenities that companies often covet when looking for spaces to relocate their businesses, Cree said.
Eighteen-foot hangar doors were also planned so that corporate aircraft can be stored inside the hangars.
The $2 million project is being handled by Darr Construction.
Program renewal
Johnstown's commercial air service is partially funded through the federal Essential Air Service program, and the current contract with United Airlines partner SkyWest Airlines expires this fall.
Carriers interested in bidding for the upcoming EAS contract, which would take effect in November, have until Aug. 15 to submit proposals to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Authority member Rick McQuaide said that SkyWest already informed the board that it will be among the applicants.
"They have already informed us they want to renew" their contract, he said.
Airport authority officials are hopeful that they will have multiple offers.
At one level, the timing is good for Johnstown, McQuaide added. Through SkyWest's service and direct flights to O'Hare International Airport in Chicago and Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia, the airport is seeing its largest passenger counts in nearly 20 years.
The latest numbers from June, reviewed by the board on Tuesday, reflected that, marking the second straight month in which the airport broke its monthly record for enplanements.
A total of 1,425 people boarded flights in Johnstown in June, figures show. The combined total of inbound and outbound passengers reached 2,850.
"People are realizing they can fly to D.C. or be halfway to Chicago before they can even drive to Pittsburgh (airport)," McQuaide said. "The growing number of passengers here helps support all of our endeavors at the airport."
Airport officials have been working with consultants to try to lure additional air service to Johnstown, specifically ultra-low-cost carriers.
Parking lot progress
The airport's parking lot paving project is expanding.
Authority officials opted to upgrade another section of lot near the restaurant space occupied by Flair of Country at a cost of $81,678.
Cree noted the authority initially viewed the area as a space for a potential terminal building expansion. But after speaking with the Federal Aviation Administration, it became clear that that is a project that can't be initiated unless and until commercial air travel increases even more.
"Basically, to expand, our (traffic) has to be busting out at the seams," Cree said. "Once we attract an ultra-low-cost carrier, then we can seek funding for it."
He and McQuaide said that the airport has plenty of flexibility to accommodate more growth in the meantime.
Short-term modifications can be made to accommodate passengers waiting to depart after they've been screened — a project the airport is already studying.
"The restaurant parking lot is in poor condition," Cree said, arguing that it makes sense to repair it now. HRI Inc. is handling both work on the main lot, which is underway, and the addition approved Tuesday.
As expected, local efforts to bolster business development at Johnstown's airport moved forward Tuesday.
A recommendation from the authority's facility and Keystone Opportunity Expansion Zone committee was approved, overlapping a new Airport Land Development Zone with the existing 138-acre KOEZ property.
Cree said each "zone" offers a different tax incentive for businesses to locate within it.
The Keystone Opportunity Expansion Zone program allows new facilities to avoid paying property taxes for several years.
Businesses locating within an Airport Land Development Zone get tax credits of up to $1,200 a year for each full-time employee at the facility.
Both state programs are administered through the Department of Community and Economic Development.
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