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HomeMy Public PortalAboutAAC Minutes 1988 09/07Airport Committee Meeting September 7, 1988 Attending: Rick Fereday Dale Points Lynn Clark Bud Schmidt Chuck (for Bill Williams, USFS) Dave Powell Bill Dorris Snow Loads for Private Hangers Dave Powell of Toothman-Orton/Hosac reported on the 1976 study by Dave Sacht at U of I and on the updated report. The original report indicated a 120 lb. ground snow load for McCall. The updated study suggests a 151 lb. snow load should be implemented. Toothman-Orton does not recommend reduction of the snow load requirement for any structure less than the existing standard. This question was brought to the committee at Council direction following a request to reduce the snow loads to stimulate development of private hangers. The 120 lb. requirement adds a substantial cost to these buildings. The committee recommended no action to adjust the snow loads at this time and to further consider the matter during the master plan update to be undertaken this fall and winter. CRASH -RESCUE PLAN Dale Points outlined the major concerns such as access and private vehicle operations on the airport. All access will be via the dog -pound area. The haul road constructed for this AIP project may be left in place for access via the south end of the runway. Bill Dorris inquired about the availability of airbags to lift wrecked aircraft. NDB Status Donnelly Fire District has given approval to locate the monitoring equipment at their station. Rick Fereday suggested an auto dialer as an alternative telephone connector. Fence: Given Fire conditions, it is unlikely the Forest service will be able to complete erecting the fence. Staff is evaluating and may make other arrangements. thur J. Schmidt, Airport Manager Build hangars as you grow A hangar manufacturer provides a design and building service for GA facilities T ruckee -Tahoe Airport, owned by a bi-county California Special Airport District, and located high in the Sierra Nevada mountains, has a fifteen year airportce plan of staggering dimensions. Today, the District owns a small General Aviation terminal, a fixed base oper- ator hangar with office space, three tee hangars that house 56 general avia- tion aircraft, and a sniall airport maintenance building. The construc- tion plan includes: (1) expansion of the terminal building to include space for two air commuters, a restaurant, and commercial usage as we11; (2) a new three unit corporate hangar -office building; (3) seven additional tee hangar buildings to house another 168 general aviation aircraft; and (4) a six -gate commercial air terminal com- plex. Ambitious as the airport plan is, the Board of Directors and Airport Manager, George H. Edmondson, see it as realistic. They cite two major reasons for the need to expand. First, the airport now serves one of the world's largest and fastest growing year-round recreation -resort areas. Included in the area are beautiful Lake Tahoe and well known Squaw Valley, home of the 1960 Winter Olympics. Second, the recreation boom is drawing new residents desir- ing to live in the dean air and beauty of the mountains. Many business men commute to destinations as far from the high Sierras as Boston, New York, Norfolk, Miami, and Hawaii. Buiid+s•you grow plan The Truckee -Tahoe Airport plan is being programmed by the Board of Directors on a build as you grow con- cept. According to Airport Manage' George Edmondson, there will soon be a profit from improvements such as the two recently constructed 24-unit general aviation aircraft tee hangars designed by Erect -A -Tube, Inc. Because of winter snow conditions, the Board recognized that a hangar storage at this mountain recreation airport would be desirable and necessary. Winters can be extreme with annual snowfall at the airport often exceeding 150 inches. Hairport has lost revenue through ghethe winter because revenue through to seek shelter aircraft were forced down the mountain. Therefore, the Board felt that investment in General Aviation aircraft tee hangars would be a necessary and sound investment, according to Edmondson, providing that certain problems in the 'design. and cost areas could be overcome. The service cited is a new venture by Erect -A -Tube, Inc., Harvard, Illi- nois. The company manufactures multiple tee hangars, single unit ranch hangars, electric bi-fold doors, large bottom rolling hangar doors, and aircraft winches. According to Erect- A-Tube President, Kenn Shelton, the Design/Build Service is in response to demands by fixed base operators, mu- nicipalities, counties, districts and air- port managers for experienced profes- sional help in the design and construc- tion of General Aviation facilities. Such help has not been readily available for the planning, designing, and building of General Aviation facilities, Shelton says. He points out that large engineering and d architec- tural m j firms equipped handle nor r airport projects are not geared experienced in meeting the specialised needs of General Aviation. In addi- tion, small engineering and architec- tural firms seldom have any signifi- cant airport design experience. In contrast, Erect -A -Tube's engineering department, field repre- sentatives, and executives have ac- tually been providing a viable abl deorms- build service for years, on AIRPoRrSERVIcES MANAGEMENT June 1978 basis. A wide variety of General Avia- tion projects across the United States illustrate the depth and scope of service. flow Ityolked at Truckee -Tahoe' The Truckee -Tahoe Airport Dis- trict is a political sub -division of California. Like a school district, it is funded by taxes, presently at a rate of 20 cents per $100.00 of assessed valua- tion. The current assessed value is $210 million. Airport policies and supervision are provided by a five member Board of Directors locally elected from the district for a term of four years. The present Board consists of fly- ing businessmen, all aircraft owners, several with flying backgrounds that date back to the European and Pacific theaters of World War II. The Airport Manager, who is Secretary of the Board, is a retired Navy Commander with a flight background also dating back to World War II. Needless to say, the Directors and Manager are avia- tion oriented. According to District Board President Donald Beck, areald- tor whose hobby is racing planes who holds several class records, "We're all flyers, all residents of a booming recreational area, and inten- sely interested in what is good for the airport. Being customers of the airport ourselves, we believe we understand other customer's wants and needs " The Truckee -Tahoe District owns 597 acres of land and plans to acquire an additional 250 acres. The objective of the District plan is to insure that the airport development is in harmony with the area; that is, wide open spaces with facilities oriented to recreational activities. The North. 'Truckee -Tahoe -Donner area has one major industry —recreation —and the residents prefer to keep it that way. To D z -v z z z z v ✓ n c, z ASMIHANGARS 19 this end, the airport plan also includes the development of an aero recreation park to be utilized by fly -in campers, and glider and hot air balloon enthusiasts. Against tbia background, the Board determined that certain obstacles had to be resolved. Prior to taking the first step in ex- panding its General Aviation oper- ation —construction of rental hangar units —the District had to tackle four major problems. These problems. were: 1. High Constriction Costs in Snow Country —Due to extreme winter conditions, a county building require- ment specified roof construction be able to withstand a snow load of 160 pounds per square foot. If met, this re- quirement would have driven con- struction costs to a point where rental fees would have been prohibitive. A variance to this building requirement would have to be obtained for t1. hangar project to proceed. 2. PoUtical Considerations —Since General Aviation at the Truckee - Tahoe Airport serves a relatively small group of aircraft owners in rela- tion to the District taxpayers, the Board felt the hangars would have to be financed by monies from sources other than tax revenues. 3. Need for Maximum Quality —Ac- cording to Edmondson, the Board and public at large wanted a hangar not only with functional design and quality, but also designed to harmon- ize with the surrounding area. 4. Need for Design/Build Contractor —The lack of designers capable of handling an airport's special needs and problems was highlighted at Truckee -Tahoe. A number of hangar building manufacturers were con- tacted. Erect -A -Tube was more cooperative than the others when asked to modify their standard build- ing to the District's specifications, without substantial cost increases. one point the District commisaio an architect to design a wood frame or,, concrete hangar building with a 120 pound or a 40 pound roof load. Even bids on a hangar designed with a less costly 40 pound roof load proved to be too expensive to permit a reasonable rental fee. Solving hangar problems In 1968, just prior to the county's establishing the higher snow load re- , quirement, the District built its first hangar with a 40 pound roof load. The building had a gabled roof that con- tributed to sheet ice problems on the north side of the building. But, ac- Tee hangars harmonise with .surroundings: .Noie how the color scheme and the low roof profile of the buildings are in keepingwith the *de open cording to Manager Edmondson, "the structure had one outstanding feature, trouble -free, electrically operated bi- fold doors. Aside from the ice build-up at the base of the building, Ed- mondson recalls only one door main- tenance incident during the ten years of operation. The District contacted Erect -A -Tube, manufacturer of the bi- fold doors, mainly because of the trou- ble -free success we had with their doors. After diacusaing our problems with them, we felt confident that our special requirements would be met through their Design/Build Services. Kenn Shelton personally supervised the design and construction of the first two 24-unit& The four basic problems were solved as follows: 1. High Construction Costs in Snow Country —Extensive detail drawings and calculations, worked out by Erect - A -Tube engineers and backed up by the airport board, convinced county authorities to reduce the snow load re- quirement from 160 pounds to 45 pounds. Additionally, a single.aloped roof was designed with dark roof sheets to absorb the sun's heat, and hasten the melting of the snow. The roof slope was also oriented to the greatest sun and wind exposure, thereby utilizing nature to help keep the roof clear of snow and ice. These features, together with historical weather data, were presented to the county officials prior to obtaining ap- proval to design the hangars with a 45 pound snow load. 2. Political Considerations —Accord- ing to Manager Edmondson, the key to overcoming the fear among tax- payers that private plane owners were benefiting from tax levies has been the demonstrated financial self-sufficien- cy of the rental hangar unite The Dis- trict's tax -supported financial stability was a factor, but only in backing up loans. To finance the first hangar, an unsecured $300,000 note was obtained from a commercial bank. The financing of the second hangar was achieved by borrowing $225,000 from the State Division of Aeronautics at a low interest rate, with a 15 year maturity. High -quality construction and trouble -free operation of the hangars permitted long term amortization, and resulted in a very attractive monthly rental rate. The units were designed for various single and twin engine aircraft as based at the Truckee -Tahoe Airport. They vary in door widths from 37'6" to 49'6". The door heights vary from 11' 6" to 14' 6". Rental rates range from $75.00 to $125.00 per month. A detailed accounting of the hangar rentals and expenditures clearly shows the profitability of this enterprise. Here, briefly, is the finan- cial profile of each hangar building. Rental of 24 unite $24,000 per year Insurance Costa ( 3,600) Utilities/Maintenance ( 1,200) Net Income Toward Payoff $19,200 Annually It's a very sound investment, Ed- mondson points out. "As the list of prospective hangar tenants builds up, we'll erect additional hangars and op- erating profits will pay off each pre- vious . hangar. Nine 24-unit hangars Airport Manager George Edmondson: Works with the District Board to solve the ever-increasing demand for additional General Aviation facilities. are planned. They will generate a ren- tal income of more than $200,000— all with no direct cost to the tax - Payer'!„ 3. Nod for Madman Quality) —The same low -profile roof design that over- came snowload problems also made the new hangars aesthetically pleas- ing. Stone facing and mansards with shake shingles enhance the ap- pearance of the hangars. "Visually, these units are something new and pleasing in hangars," Edmondson points out. Weather tightness is assured by the design and rugged all -steel construc- tion of the bi-fold doors. Doors have strong locking mechanisms on each side to pull the door tight against the jambs. And the bi-fold door design makes it easy to insulate the doors if desired. 'There's no drifted snow in the winter, and no dust entry when the doors are kept dosed during the sum- mer. These are the only doors to use in snow country like this," says Ed- mondson. 4. Nsed for Design/Build Contractor —According to Edmondson, this need has been satisfied through the Design/Build Services provided by Erect -A -Tube. "What we have done," the jury's President Kenn Shelton explains, "is to identify, organize, and formalize this service for General Aviation. We can expand it to include financing procurement or leasing when desirable. In short, we are offer- ing on a formal basis a custom service to solve the problems of General Avia- tion Airports, such as Truckee -Tahoe, throughout the states." L•�1 2 a c c r c Round hangars: A turnaround in aircraft storage? Aerodome Industries received a green light this week to deliver their "new" aircraft storage hangar to Collins Radio in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The 80 ft circular fiberglass structure was temporarily erected at Reading, PA for the Air Show. Collins will util- ize the building to house their flying dub aircraft. The Reading Air Show Aerodome did not have the standard rotating floor installed; however, Collins will receive the full package. Being labeled as `The Great Turn - Around in Aircraft Storage", the Aerodome has all the ingredients to truly revolutionize the aircraft storage market Designed primarily for single - engine and light twins, the circular 80 ft unit will house up to six aircraft on two -tenths of an acre of land. Ex- panded land conservation analysis in- dicates the Aerodome concept is capa- ble of "doubling" the storage poten- tial over conventional T-hangars, using the same amount of real estate. "We've solved two pressing prob- lems with the Aerodome design", says James Garufo, Aerodome's presi- dent, ... "better use of airport proper- . ty and the reduction of manpower overhead." The mechanical features of the Aerodome make operation a one-man affair. An electrically -operated turntable rotates in either direction to allow entry or exit of one aircraft without disturbing the others. A winch permanently installed inside the building facilitates aircraft move- ment. The single bi-fold door, also electrically operated, offers a bonus: reduction of potential door problems experienced by conventional storage Reprinted {remAIRF Rr$ERVEES MANAGEMENT. November 1978 units and a drastic reduction in taxi - ramp requirements. "When the Aerodome units are grouped together, they can reduce taxi -ramp requirements by 75% ", says Garufo. Accordingly, two ten -unit T-hangars require over 55,000 sq. ft. of ramp space while four Aerodome units, housing the same number of aircraft on one-half the real estate, re- quire less than 12,000 sq. ft. of ramps. Construction costs are reduced and snow removal is less of a task. The first major exposure of the Aerodome was last May at the Ameri- can Association of Airport Executives Convention in Cincinnati. Sales forecast from the AAAE Show num- ber at least twelve units with another dozen by year's end. The Reading Air Show provided an opportunity for east coast prospects to see a full-scale model of the Aero- dome. Erected as a temporary struc- ture, the unit brought considerable ASMHANGARS 21