The Executive Director of the Airport Authority pled for runway funding at the 23 July 2013 Regular Session of the Lowndes County Commission.

5. SPLOST VII request from Executive Director of Airport Authority

The one public speaker when County Chairman Bill Slaughter “opened up” the SPLOST VII item was Jim Galloway, Executive Director of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Airport Authority, who noted SPLOST VII included nothing for the airport from the county or any of the cities. The long runway is federally funded, but the shorter runway is not. He asked for county funding. which I see now lists its board members on its website:

Steve Everett – Chairman
Jeff Sikes
Nathaniel Haugabrook
Dr. James Sinnott
Anthony Payton
Jane Shelton
Jim Galloway – executive director/airport manager (229) 333-1833

Here’s Jim Galloway in a Valdosta CEO video explaining what the Airport Authority is and does, for example board members serve four years each and VLD has the longest runway in the state outside Atlanta. Here’s a flyer from the Airport Authority about Benefits of Valdosta Regional Airport:

260 jobs, $7.8 million payroll, total economic output $25.1 million, with On-Airport output of $10.7 million and Vistor output of $7 million, for “Multiplier $7.3 million Output”.

They also have, according to Stuart Taylor in the VDT 9 May 2013,

AirLife Georgia, a subsidiary of Air Methods, Inc…. Air Methods has been specializing in air medical transport since 1980, with more than 300 bases of operation spanning from Alaska to Key West.

Here’s all the minutes have to say about all that:

Airport Authority Director, James Galloway, addressed the Commission and requested funding be allocated for the Airport Authority to help pay for improvements not covered by federal funds.

Here’s the video:

Airport Authority Director pled for SPLOST VII funding
Regular Session, Lowndes County Commission (LCC),
Video by John S. Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 23 July 2013.

-jsq

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