Feb. 3—What a difference a year makes.
This time in 2024, the normally under-the-radar — so to speak — Scottsdale Airport Advisory Commission had the city buzzing.
At its January 2024 meeting, the volunteer commission took a hard look at Axon's request for just under 2,000 apartments and decided, more or less: "You're grounded."
It was a tough ruling for the Taser-making juggernaut, even if the commission's power is only, as its very name stresses, "advisory."
Indeed, Axon eventually won City Council approval of its plan, though a group led by former Councilman Bob Littlefield is going over elected officials' heads to put the Axon plan before voters.
After the Taxpayers Against Awful Apartment Zoning Exceptions (TAAAZE) submitted 26,000 signatures supporting its referendum request in December, city and county audit results cleared the way for Axon's apartment plan to be on the 2026 ballot (unless City Council holds a special election).
When presented with the plan in early 2024, airport commissioners raised issues related to safety and bright lights that might distract pilots.
The commissioners jointly agreed, stating that upwards of 4,000 residents under the flight path would lead to complaint after complaint about plane noise. One said it would create "an existential crisis" and pointed to other city airports threatened by complaints from new neighbors.
In November, Scottsdale Aviation Director Gary Mascaro told the commission that Council was satisfied with improvements in reduced lighting and a slight reduction in living units Axon made to its plan.
Mascaro noted — as he told Council — that Axon was not required to win approval from the Airport Advisory Commission before moving ahead.
None of the commissioners revisited their complaints about potential noise complaints.
Unlike the turbulent 2024 meeting that featured impassioned pleas from Axon neighbors to reject the plan, the Airport Advisory Committee meeting was, to use an aviation term, a milk run.
Rather than concerns about potential complaints that might ground the airport, there were satisfied nods as Mascaro and his staff shared heartening news:
Complaints are nosediving. Air traffic — to put it metaphorically — is circling, though at slightly lower altitudes.
Kelli Kuester, an aviation staff member who oversees the "noise abatement" program, later summarized the twin-engined news to the Progress.
Flights in and out of Scottsdale airport dipped a bit in 2024 compared to 2023 — no surprise, as 2023 was the big Super Bowl year.
So why did noise complaints plummet last year?
Scottsdale in 2024 maintained its position as the tail end of the country's top top 10 airports for "domestic business jet operations."
In 2005, during a powerful growth spurt in the Airpark area, there were 15,589 complaints about noise and other issues with the Scottsdale Airport.
Annual complaints gradually fell by more than half by 2017.
Starting in 2020, yearly complaints consistently were under 2,000, falling to 1,248 in 2023. In 2024, that was cut nearly in half: only 691 complaints all of last year.
How did that happen?
Airport staff are a bit puzzled, if pleasantly so.
"We continue to encourage our noise abatement procedures as we have done in year's past through our webpage, pilot guide, and annual meeting with the operators and pilots," Kuester said, via email.
"With that being said, we don't have anything specific that we can point to in terms of strategy regarding the 2024 noise complaints being lower than previous years."
Sounding modest, she hinted "a robust community outreach program that includes presentations, tours, and events for the public" could be helping. "We take every opportunity to educate residents on the airport and our operations," Kuester added.
The number of flights in and out are easier to explain.
"Total flight operations in 2024" were down just over 5,000 flights compared to 2023.
According to Kuester, "a variety of variables can impact flight operations such as special events like Super Bowl, current state of the economy, etc., so it is difficult to determine why operations may go up and down any given year.
"We are keeping an eye on 'trends' coming out of the pandemic as well as we experienced higher flight operations in 2020."
A new master plan is rolling down the runway, preparing for takeoff.
A public information workshop took place in October, with three more coming soon. The next will likely take place in March, but has not been finalized.
Sky-high 'profits'
If they could, investors would love to buy stock in the Scottsdale Airport.
Last year, the airport raked in revenues of just under $9.4 million.
Operating costs were about $3.3 million.
So is that a profit of over $6 million?
Not quite, Kuester explained.
"The airport is a self-sustaining, enterprise fund which means no citizen tax dollars are used to operate," she said.
"The airport is not a profit center for the city, as most of that 'profit' typically goes towards our Capital Improvement Plan projects."
That includes the likes of the recently-completed apron rehabilitation.
"Most projects receive the majority of their funding from the FAA and ADOT, but the airport is required to cover a small percentage of the cost which is where some of that money goes throughout the year," Kuester said.
And revenues over expenses help pay down bonds and other debt.
"Our revenue/expense budget for fiscal year 2024-25 track in comparison to previous fiscal years," Kuester said.
"Each year during the budget process, we will research industry trends as well as any major events that may impact our budget and we will adjust accordingly."
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