I think Inge Friesen has really got a point. Where the airport is at, is a very valuable piece of property the city could really cash in on.
There are lots of more suitable places close to town that could be purchased, for a fraction of the money, the city could get for the present air strip.
Also, the new place could be purchased with lots of extra land for later expansion, plus room for the helicopter pad out of the way of the runway, or future runways.
Yes I know that a lot of people would like to see Vernon stay a small city, but it’s just not going to happen, with the area it’s located in. As to a lot of the buildings at the airport, people will say what about the cost of rebuilding them on a new site?
Please take a good look at them, most of what are worth moving are prefab, and could be disassembled and re-assembled on a new site, painted and look great.
But before long, they would have to be expanded.
There’s no reason that Vernon couldn’t have a great aircraft rebuild centre. Yes, I know people are going to say, well Flightcraft is just down the road.
But you know what, take a good look at their facility. They are growing by leaps and bounds. Where are they going to find the property to expand?
Yes, the Kelowna airport has bought the golf course next door. But that will be used up for runways as that airport grows. So it would make sense for Flightcraft to expand to Vernon’s new airport, as well as lots of other airport businesses.
If you build it, they will come, along with the major airlines wanting to land here as well. So if you do buy a new piece of land, make sure it has lots of room for expansion and clear flight paths for large aircraft.
Some will say that this guy is crazy, but just wait 20 years and you will see. One thing I didn’t mention was that if new land is purchased for the airport, it shouldn’t be too far off the new bypass.
This could be a win-win for the city, with a new airport and if managed carefully, it should leave some money left over in the kitty.
With Trudeau going to spend a lot of money on infrastructure, there’s no reason I can see why Vernon shouldn’t get a good sized piece of that, as a new airport will need all the services that are capable of handling future needs.
Don’t believe me, well grab on to your seat and hang on, for this city is going to really boom.
With some foresight and good management, it will be sooner than later. Just like real estate, location, location, location are the main factors.
Frank Adams
Vernon