A consultant's report suggests the majority of Osoyoos residents are in favour of expanding the Osoyoos Airport and that there would be significant economic benefits to the community if expansion did take place.
A debate that has raged in the Town of Osoyoos for years about what to do with that community’s tiny airport is once again back in the spotlight.
On Monday, Osoyoos Council will discuss a consultant’s report prepared by InterVISTAS Consulting Inc. called Osoyoos Airport: Strategic Plan & Opportunity Assessment, which was prepared for the Osoyoos Airport Development Society (OADS).
That society, which features several business owners in Osoyoos, was formed four years ago to look at ways to turn the Osoyoos Airport into a viable and economically-feasible operation.
The Society commissioned InterVISTA to conduct a strategic plan that identifies potential airport development opportunities, as well as a roadmap of how to achieve them, states the executive summary in the 24-page study that will be discussed by Osoyoos Council Monday.
“The Society indicated the need for an actionable set of airport development items that align with the desires of stakeholders and rightsholders of Osoyoos and surrounding areas,” says the executive summary.
InterVISTAS hosted numerours stakeholder sessions to solicit feedback and recommendations from community members on their current and future vision for the airport.
InterVISTAS specializes in the aviation industry, especially airports and their consulting services include economic analysis, governance issues, regulatory and legislative advocacy, travel and tourism strategies, security and border facilitation, international transportation policy and a wide range of other services.
The report summarizes that, “The airport shall serve as a gateway to the future economic development and enhanced services for the people of Osoyoos and surrounding areas.”
Airports of all sizes in Canada are economic generators for the communities in which they reside, says the report.
“The fundamental building block of these airports is general aviation, which paves the way for new businesses and economic development,” says the report. “Airport-related businesses pay wages to their employees, which in turn spend money in the local communities and drive economic activity.
“These are known as induced effects. Many supplier industries such as catering and maintenance only exist due to the presence of the airport and these are known as indirect effects.”
The report finds that “one general aviation aircraft is estimated to generate .57 full-time equivalent of direct employment”, but this is based on aircraft owners wishing to station their aircraft at Osoyoos Airport.
There is also potential for related businesses to exist at the nearby Buena Vista Industrial Park, says the report.
Airports also serve as a catalyst for tourism and convention industries by facilitating air travel and giving individuals direct access to product offerings and businesses involved in the hospitality industry are significant beneficiaries of these travellers in particular, says the report.
The Town of Osoyoos has owned the land where Osoyoos Airport is now based through a free Crown grant in 1988.
In 2005, the Town of Osoyoos began work on a series of updates and extensions of the airport.
Some of these projects include a 75-metre base for runway extension, paving 755 metres of runway, widening the runway, painting lines on the runway, developing aircraft and helicopter parking and a tiedown area, installing and apron and taxiway, installing water, sewer, electrical and telephone service to airport property and reconstructing the intersection on Hwy. 3, says the report.
The current runway is just under 2,500 feet in length, which is 700 feet shorter than the runway at the Oliver Airport, located 20 kilometres north.
It’s also half the size of the airport in Tofino and much smaller than the Salmon Arm Regional Airport.
The Osoyoos Airport sits on 37 acres of land and only a small parcel is currently available for airside and commercial revenue purposes, says the report.
The airport does not offer any services or utilities currently in terms of lighting and navigational aids and the side is not fully enclosed nor has completed perimeter fencing.
Aircraft tie-downs were in place in the past, however, they have been removed.
The facility currently hosts drag racing events sponsored by the Wine Country Racing Association five times a year on the airport runway.
The current runway “is in very good condition,” said the report.
Extending the current runway is possible and warranted, said the report.
“In the short term, extending the existing runway by 1,000 to 1,450 feet … can significantly increase the capability of the runway to accommodate small general aviation aircraft,” said the report. “For the long term, a further extension of approximately 2,000 feet … would be necessary to enable commercial air service with the largest aircraft expected to operate in the market.”
In general, stakeholders view the airport as a benefit to the commjnity and support its future growth, says the report.
“Many airports across Canada are owned and operated by their respective municipality or in some cases a partnership between several municipalities,” says the report. “In the case of the Town of Osoyoos, a decision will have to be made by Council as to whether or not public funds will be made available to the airport.”
Back in 2014, newly-elected Mayor Sue McKortoff and members of staff issued a press release stating council was considering selling the land where the Osoyoos Airport is located and repurposing it to possibly expand the town’s current industrial park northwest of town limits.
This announcement led to the formation of the OADS, whose members urged council to reconsider.
Council announced in 2015 that it has listened to their concerns and concerns from many local citizens and groups and would no longer consider closing the airport and repurposing airport lands for industrial use.
The entire report can be viewed on the Town of Osoyoos website at www.osoyoos.ca.
