Airport commissioner Geoff Wheeler announced to the Martha’s Vineyard Airport Commission Thursday afternoon that after nine months, the Federal Aviation Administration decided it would permit the commission to set rates for business park leases through a custom formula geared to be less burdensome to the tenants than fair market value. Wheeler said he doesn’t know of anywhere else the FAA has made such a concession, other than on Nantucket.
“I think that’s why they sent this thing down to Washington and they sat on it for a few months, trying to figure out what to do,” Wheeler said.
Among other things, the FAA permitted the airport commission to cap rent increases for “nonaeronautical” tenants (lessees at the business park) at 10 percent, therefore staving off large rent increases the airport felt it was previously compelled to charge based on existing regulations. The airport commission and the Martha’s Vineyard Airport Business Park Tenants Association were at loggerheads over rent increases. Until a compromise could be struck, the airport commission extended a number of leases due for renewal rather than charge tenants higher rates they disagreed with.
Wheeler told the board that despite the concession, the FAA remains eager to see the airport exact fair market value from its tenants.
The language of the FAA’s allowance reads as follows: “[T]he airport rental policy provides that all new nonaeronautical leases with a term exceeding five years will include a [consumer price index] adjustment every year, and an appraisal adjustment every fifth year. The [fair market value] rent appraisal will be conducted by a licensed professional with at least ten (10) years’ experience as a commercial real estate broker or appraiser on Martha’s Vineyard. However, in no event will the FMV appraisal adjustment exceed the prior year’s rental rate (after CPI adjustment) by more than 10 percent. Existing leases that have renewal options will, upon renewal, increase by a maximum of 10 percent over the last year’s rent. For the rest of the term of the lease, the rent adjustments will follow the policy for new leases based upon the existing lease terms.”
The commission voted unanimously to adopt that language and distribute it to the business park tenants.
Airport commission chair Bob Rosenbaum told The Times Friday that he deemed the FAA decision “extremely important” to all of the business park tenants, some of whom were facing double or triple rents under fair market evaluation of their leaseholds. He added that he was glad all parties were patient with the FAA.
“We depend on the good graces of the FAA” for what he describes as “tens of millions” in funding for capital projects.
“This clearly is one of the crowning achievements that the commission has done,” he said.
When asked Friday if he deemed the FAA decision as positive, Fred Fournier, who heads the business park association, and who abruptly resigned from the airport commission last April, said, “Yes, definitely. We’re very happy with what has happened to date.” He qualified that by saying, “Just on the surface, it sounds and looks good.” Fournier said he would need to dig into the details before giving the new allowance a complete blessing.
In other business, the commission unanimously voted Rosenbaum in again as chair, on a nomination by commissioner Kristen Zern. Ahead of the vote, Rosenbaum asked if there were any other nominations. Hearing none, he razzed his colleagues. “Bunch of chickens,” he said.
On Friday he said he believed he continues to do a good job as chair, and applauded his fellow commissioners.
“I think we have a really good commission, and people are working well together,” he said.
Commissioner Don Ogilvie was voted in again as vice chair, commissioner Richard Knabel was voted in again as treasurer, and Zern was voted in again as secretary.
FFA is Future Farmers of America. What do they have to do with airports.
Through the fence airport parks exist at other airports, like Scottsdale, AZ. The challenge is to create an equitable fee for runway use.
We fixed the typo. Thanks.
How much do you charge for proofreading?
The headline on the Daily Minute says “FCC”.
Yes. Not my best day. I’ll admit.
George– we all do typos. You are in a vulnerable spot, but really — we all do typos.
Illegitimi non carborundum. 🙂
Thanks for putting the recent comments feature back —-
illegitimi non carborundum has no meaning in latin. It is a mock aphorism. Just thought you would want to know Mr Keller.
I’m quite certain Mr. Keller already knows himself quite well, but yes, many others would want to know him, too. Commas matter, Mr. Engelman!
Andrew– “aphorism”–good word there. I did not know it.
The purpose of language is to communicate a thought from one person to another.
“everybody knows” what “illegitimi non carborundum” means.
If someone said it “was raining cats and dogs” everybody would know that animals were not actually falling out of the sky.
Such is the power of education..
Andrews comment sure was out of the blue and he was bending over backwards to show his command of the English language. People like that are two peas in a pod and often live in glass houses so they should not throw stones.