The Chautauqua County Airport, just north of Jamestown. (Image via Google)

MAYVILLE – The Chautauqua County Legislature has approved a resolution that will use tax payer money to subsidize commercial flight operations at the Chautauqua County Airport in Jamestown.

The decision was made Wednesday night and comes as county officials work to get commercial air service to back to the airport. The airport in Jamestown has been without commercial flights since January 2018.

The resolution was approved 16-1, with Frank “Jay” Gould being the only “No” vote.

According to the Post-Journal, the resolution states the county would fund $72,000 in cash and $52,000 through in-kind services as part of the local subsidy. County officials will also be asking the business community to fund $75,000 in cash and $87,000 through in-kind services toward commercial service.

Officials hope the move will help show the U.S. Department of Transportation the county is willing to invest its own money, say they will – in turn – authorize the return of the Essential Air Service subsidy, which would cover the majority of the cost of having a commercial air service operate out of Jamestown.

In order to return federal funding, the DOT would like a 10% local contribution to the nearly $3 million annual subsidy it provides through the EAS for three years.

Also on Wednesday, Congressman Tom Reed (R-Corning, NY-23) announced three grants valued at $660,000 to provide the Jamestown Airport with funding to renovate and improve their facilities.

The DOT awards Airport Capital Improvement Program Grants (ACIP) through the Federal Aviation Administration for the planning and development of public-use airports.

Rep. Tom Reed (R-Corning)

JAMESTOWN – Congressman Tom Reed (R-Corning) was in Chautauqua County this week to meet with officials, including County Executive George Borrello, to discuss the county airport. In addition, he made time to stop by the YWCA in Jamestown to learn more about the services it provides for the community.

During a regional media conference call on Tuesday, Reed said he met Monday with Borrello and others to further discuss the future of passenger air service at the Chautauqua County Airport in Jamestown.

The airport has been without commercial service since early 2018 when the Department of Transportation pulled its Essential Air Service (EAS) funding for Southwest Airways Express. Since then, county officials and federal representatives have been working to return the funding under a new passenger service plan provided by new air carrier, Boutique Air. However, federal transportation officials denied that request earlier this year. Still, Congressman Reed says the effort isn’t over and a meeting took place Monday to further discuss the matter.

“We were able to meet at the Chautauqua Harbor Hotel with George [Borrello], with the airport manager, and with the leaders of the community – the business community in particular – about assessing the support for the need of commercial airline service to the Jamestown airport,” Reed said.

Reed said that those he talked with have shown that there still is a need for passenger air service.

“What I heard from the room is that there is a tremendous amount of support for commercial airline service for the Jamestown airport and one of the things we’re exploring is how do we make that application to the Federal Department of Transportation Federal Department of Transportation under the EAS program that would make commercial airline service to the Jamestown airport viable,” Reed said.

In addition to meeting with officials to discuss the airport, he also stopped by the YWCA in Jamestown to learn more about its programming and services for the greater Jamestown Community.

“It was inspiring to not only be with those caseworkers, not only the department heads and leaders and hear their story and commitment to the needs of the community, but then to round table with teen mothers themselves, for example, to hear first-hand how these programs are benefiting them and how they are arming them in a positive way to take on life’s challenges that they are facing but, most importantly as demonstrated by one of the graduates of the program, are overcoming any sorts of obstacles and are thriving with the situations that they dealt with, “Reed said.

The YWCA offers a variety of programming such as early care and educational; after school programs; summer camp; transitions and supportive housing; supervised visitation; a Women2Women coaching program; the Teenage Education and Motherhood (TEAM) program; and many others.
For more information, visit www.ywcaof jamestown.com.

The Chautauqua County Airport, just north of Jamestown. (Image via Google)

WASHINGTON, DC – Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand wrote to Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Elaine Chao to urge her to provide the necessary waivers and approvals that could allow for a new air service provider to land at Chautauqua County’s Jamestown Airport.

According to a media release sent out Tuesday morning, the senators said access to commercial air service, when reliable, can be a critical resource for Chautauqua County and that the Department of Transportation should issue the necessary waivers as part of the Essential Air Service (EAS) program to ensure every opportunity for a new carrier to land in Jamestown.

The EAS program has helped to support Chautauqua County air service for years, but recently the service provided to the region has been inadequate, and as a result has thrown future support from this federal program into jeopardy. The Senator’s urged USDOT to reconsider the decision to terminate EAS eligibility in Jamestown, in hopes that in partnership with local officials, a new and more reliable carrier could be found to help serve the region.

The Senator’s also acknowledged the importance of ensuring that federal support is only used on carriers that actually deliver the service they promise, and as a result are also calling for iron clad commitments on service reliability, affordability, and frequency from the next airline that could serve the region.

“Access to commercial air service, when safe and reliable, through the EAS program is a lifeline for rural communities across the United States, including Chautauqua County, and is vital to continued economic development and quality of life,” the Senators wrote. “Terminating EAS waiver eligibility for the Chautauqua County-Jamestown Airport will deprive residents and businesses in Chautauqua County from having local access to commercial air travel, which is important to the region’s economic development and tourism industry. Other industries, including manufacturing and medical services rely on commercial air service to connect to the global marketplace.”

In Jamestown, there are over 940 established businesses with nearly 15,000 employees and an annual payroll of nearly $500 million dollars, and – according to Schumer and Gillibrand along with local officials – commercial air service to the Chautauqua County-Jamestown Airport is a key component of the local and regional economy. Over the past few months, the airport has seen a surge of flights by nearly 50 percent, and that number is expected to increase with the revitalization of Downtown Jamestown and increased tourism as a result of the opening of the National Comedy Center this summer.

In 1978, Congress passed the Airline Deregulation Act (ADA) despite concerns raised at that time regarding the effect it would have on air service to small communities. The EAS program was established to guarantee that communities served by air carriers prior to deregulation would continue to have commercial air service, preventing the loss of a vital mode of transportation that would result in economic harm to rural communities. Access to adequate air service has become imperative to the success of our local economies. However, rural communities have struggled to retain or attract commercial airline service. In New York State, six airports depend on this critical program: Chautauqua County-Jamestown Airport, Massena International Airport, Ogdensburg International Airport, Plattsburgh International Airport, Adirondack Regional Airport, and Watertown International Airport.

The intersection of U.S. Route 20 and NY Route 60 in Fredonia, NY (Image from Google Maps)

FREDONIA – The New York State Department of Transportation has announced that the Design Report/State Environment Quality Review Act Environmental Assessment for the US Route 20 and NY Route 60 intersection improvement project in Fredonia is now available for public review and comment.

DOT officials say the purpose of the project is to address the high number of accidents involving left-turns at the commercial driveways at the approaches to the intersection.  The project proposes the installation of a raised median barrier on the approaches, and construction of a roundabout at the currently signalized intersection of Routes 20 and 60 to reduce the number of accidents.

This project previously received design approval in March of 2017 but the design approval was rescinded due to public comments.  As a result, an Environmental Assessment was prepared with further study.

The Environmental Assessment report is now being made available to the public for a two-week review and comment period.  One copy of the report is available at each of the following three locations from January 29 to February 12, 2018:

• Town Hall of Pomfret, 9 Day Street, Fredonia, NY 14063
• Village Hall of Fredonia, 9 Church Street, Fredonia, NY 14063
• Darwin R Barker Library, 7 Day Street, Fredonia, NY 14063

The document can also be viewed electronically at:

https://www.dot.ny.gov/regional-offices/region5/other-topics

NYSDOT expects project design approval by March of 2018, and construction to begin in summer of 2018.

Written comments on the project should be sent to the New York State Department of Transportation, 100 Seneca Street, Buffalo, NY 14203 with attention to assistant regional design engineer Sanjay Singh.

U.S. Senator Charles Schumer

WASHINGTON – Senator Charles Schumer is using a recent train derailment in West Virginia as evidence that more needs to be done to ensure proper safety for the transportation of oil across our nation’s railways.

Schumer called on the Department of Transportation and the Office of Management and Budget Thursday to expedite the release of finalized rules and new comprehensive car standards for trains carrying oil in the wake of the West Virginia accident.

Schumer’s call comes after it was revealed that the crude-oil rail cars that were part of the massive explosion in West Virginia this week would likely not meet the proposed rules and new car standards that the federal Department of Transportation (DOT) is pursuing.

Schumer said it was critically important that OMB and DOT not weaken these rules as they are finalized, in light of the West Virginia accident.

Schumer said that the accident in West Virginia demonstrates yet again that weak, rupture-prone cars, are endangering communities and first responders throughout New York and across the United States, and he urged the DOT and OMB to finally release their rule.

The Chautauqua County Airport, just north of Jamestown. (Image via Google)

MAYVILLE – Pittsburgh will be the connecting hub for the next air service provider at the Chautauqua County Airport in Jamestown. That’s according to an article in today’s Jamestown Post-Journal, which also reports that County Executive Vince Horrigan can’t say yet who the air carrier will be, but can confirm that it will be flying in and out of Pittsburgh.

Before making it official, the county must first receive approval from the federal Department of Transportation.

The county actually had two airlines that submitted bids to provide air service to Chautauqua County. Both of the bidders use Pittsburgh as a connecting destination, and it was not a deciding factor in the decision.

The bids came following the news earlier this year that Silver Airways Corp. – owned and operated by United Airlines – would no longer be providing service in and out of Cleveland by the end of this month.

Even if the new airline is not confirmed by the end of this month, Silver Airways is still required to provide service. That’s because a contract between Silver and the federal Essential Air Service program stipulates it must continue to provide service for the county until the new carrier takes over.