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In a split decision, with the deciding vote cast by Mayor Frank Friedman, Lexington City Council approved a resolution last Thursday to join other local governments in supporting a feasibility study for a general aviation airport in Rockbridge County.
Council had discussed the proposed resolution for supporting the feasibility study at its March 7 meeting, voting to table the discussion to last Thursday. The resolution has received support from other governing bodies within the county. Buena Vista’s City Council also held a vote on the resolution at its March 7 meeting and voted unanimously to support it. The Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 to support the resolution in January and the Glasgow Town Council recently supported the resolution 5-1.
The majority of the funding for the feasibility study will be covered by the Federal Aviation Administration and the Virginia Department of Aviation, but a local contribution of $40,000 is required from Rockbridge County. The county has asked Buena Vista and Lexington to partner in funding the study.
Boyd Brown, chair of the Rockbridge County Economic Development Authority, answered questions from City Council and asked for Lexington’s support of the resolution.
“The supervisors would greatly value Lexington’s partnership in this,” he said. “Full partnership in fact, which allows all partners to shape the RFP which shapes the feasibility study.”
Council member Nicholas Betts repeated his desire to amend the final portion of the resolution to clarify that the city’s support was only for the feasibility study at this time and not for the airport itself, which he raised at the March 7 meeting. He then moved to approve the resolution with the amended language.
“I feel like we should have a seat at the table, and we can support the feasibility study without supporting the airport,” he said.
Vice Mayor Marilyn Alexander, who was absent from the March 7 meeting, made note of the history of regional cooperation between the county, Lexington and Buena Vista during Council’s discussion of the resolution, and provided the second for the motion.
“It’s my understanding that the county EDA can cover all of [the local contribution], but the county has come to us as a partner because we partner on so many other things,” she said. “They would like to see the two cities be part of this effort. It’s the principle of them wanting to include us now and not after the fact.”
Council member David Sigler joined Alexander and Betts in voting in support of the resolution, while Council members Charles Aligood, Chuck Smith and Leslie Straughan voted against it. Friedman cast a vote in favor, carrying the motion 4-3.
At the March 7 meeting, Smith expressed a desire for the city’s Industrial Development Authority to provide the funding for the city’s portion of the local funding match rather than having the money come from the city’s general fund, a sentiment he reiterated at last week’s meeting, noting that he could not “in good conscious, use taxpayer dollars to support the feasibility study.”
City Manager Jim Halasz informed Council that he had, as requested, reached out to the members of the IDA board following the March 7 meeting and while he had not spoken to all six of the members, the four he did speak to agreed to consider funding the city’s portion if directed to do so by Council.
Straughan argued that the decision should not be based on whether the IDA would be willing to provide the funds.
“If we support the study, move forward with it,” she said. “But I feel like we’re trying to push the decision off on the IDA. … If we want to move forward, move forward and take ownership of it, or don’t move forward.”
