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Extracted from Consolidated Report

This investigation was originally published as part of a larger consolidated report containing multiple investigations. View the consolidated PDF for the complete document.

Imperial County Grand Jury • 2007-2008

Imperial County Airport

5 pages
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Findings 18 findings

F1 Page 57
It is not possible to expand the airport. The highway on the east, development on the south and on the west, and the City of Imperial water plant on the North prohibit making the airport larger.
F2 Page 57
The second floor of the airport terminal has not been used since 1994/95 because it is not in compliance with American Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements for handicapped persons. Neither access to the second floor nor to access to the restrooms meet ADA standards. Consequently, while the second floor has a number of potential uses, it has remained idle for over ten years.
F3 Page 57
The runways are in poor condition.
F4 Page 57
The airport rents airplane hangars to the public. The hangars are being used in some cases for purposes other than airplanes. One hangar is used to store a motor home and another is used to store a vehicle. One individual rents two and uses them as a repair garage for airplanes.
F5 Page 57
Over the years the locks have been changed on the airplane hangars, but management does not have keys to all of the locks. This poses a problem for airport fire officials who need to be able to inspect each hangar to determine what is stored inside, (gas, oil, paint, etc.) and to determine whether there is proper fire safety equipment in place including flammable lockers and fire extinguishers. Management
F6 Page 57
The Airport Director wears many hats. He is also the County Agricultural Commissioner, the Director of Weights and Measures, and the Imperial County Air Pollution Control Officer.
F7 Page 57
There have been four airport managers in the past five years.
F8 Page 57
The County recently hired a new Airport Manager and gave him the charge to improve the look and image of the airport, with the goal of bringing additional scheduled air service to the airport. 43
F9 Page 58
The current Airport Manager has enthusiastically accepted this challenge. He is working on streamlining maintenance services and improving the look of the airport and the quality of its services.
F10 Page 58
The Airport Manager does not have access to timely budgetary information about revenues and expenses. Finances are handled in El Centro by the Airport Director, Airport Assistant Director, and the Airport Financial Assistant. None of these persons is located at the airport. The Airport Manager has no idea what monies are being collected or what bills are being paid each month. This makes it very difficult to plan for and manage the facility.
F11 Page 58
The County Department of Maintenance sends two workers to the airport daily to maintain the airport facilities. The Department bills county the airport for this service. These workers do not take direction from the Airport Manager with respect to maintaining airport facilities. Apparently, the workers are only responsive to the County Maintenance Department.
F12 Page 58
There is a demand for airplane hangars. There is a waiting list of 28 persons wanting to rent a hangar at the airport. There has not been a review of the hangar rental agreements for years and it is not known how comparable the rental rates are with hangars at similarly situated airports. Finances
F13 Page 58
The monies collected by the airport are not put into the General Fund. The airport money is handled by the Imperial County Auditor/Controller, and is not mixed with other Imperial County funds.
F14 Page 58
The airport receives some money to operate from federal grants that are based on passenger use of the facility. These monies have been declining in recent years.
F15 Page 58
The airport leases/rents several acres of land at the airport, office space, T- hangars, and outdoor hangars. There has not been a review of these leases/rental agreements for a number of years. Most are on a month-to-month basis. There is confusion in some cases as to what specific parts of the airport geography are being rented by various individuals. Rental property parcel boundary lines are not clear. 44
F16 Page 59
The county has contracted with a firm to survey the airport several months ago so that lease areas can be identified. The Airport Director is waiting for the report.
F17 Page 59
A new lease document is being drafted, and all who lease/rent land from the airport will be signing a new lease very soon.
F18 Page 59
Interviews suggest that the Imperial County Board of Supervisors is not enthusiastic about investing money in the existing airport. Supervisors would prefer to see a cargo airport established in the county and think that this would be a wiser investment. CONCLUSIONS Based on the findings from the interviews and tour, the Civil Grand Jury Investigative Committee arrived at a number of conclusions. Among them is that the airport has been badly neglected. It is in need of a lot of maintenance and improvements that have been known about for years. At a time when the airport appears to have great needs, it appears to be receiving very little attention from those who are managing it. The excessively high turnover in the Airport Manager position appears to be a reflection of the problems with the management of the airport operation. The current Airport Manager appears to be a competent and conscientious employee who is capable of maintaining the airport and making it grow and become more profitable. However, the Committee found a number of circumstances that appear to complicate the efforts of the Airport Manager and make it difficult to perform his job. Among these is a lack of communication and cooperation between the Airport Director, the Airport Assistant Director and the Airport Manager. While the Airport Manager seems to have much responsibility, he appears to have little authority to carry out his job responsibilities. He lacks timely budgetary information and has limited interaction with the Airport Financial Assistant who is located across town. He has limited or no authority to direct grounds maintenance workers. The state of the lease / rental agreements for airport grounds and facilities is chaotic. While the Airport Director is working on it, this situation is likely to have already cost the airport considerable revenue. The lack of information about competitive hangar rental rates and no review of existing rental agreements for years are also likely to have cost the airport revenue. Importantly, there are also several potential safety problems that need to be addressed, including the lack of access to hangars by fire officials, appropriate use of hangars, materials stored in hangars, and the availability of appropriate fire safety equipment. 45

Recommendations 6