Hamilton International Airport

[TransitSupporter]

Originally Posted by SteelTown

Can't stand the photo of the front entrance. The yellow box with SALT written with a sharpie doesn't look professional.

I have to agree - surely the administration could find a more attractive photo of the airport entrance. I've arrived at YHM many times from Calgary enroute to Dundas, and this photo doesn't do it justice.

[LikeHamilton]

I just received this email:

Good Afternoon,
We are pleased to invite you to attend an important infrastructure event. The Honourable Lisa Raitt, Minister of Labour and MP for Halton; Dean Allison, Member of Parliament for Niagara West-Glanbrook, the Honourable Bob Chiarelli, Ontario Minister of Transportation and Minister of Infrastructure; the Honourable Ted McMeekin, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs; and His Worship Bob Bratina, Mayor of the City of Hamilton, will be in attendance.

Date: Thursday, January 10, 2013
Time: 10:00 am
Location: International Arrivals Hall, John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport, 9300 Airport Road, Hamilton, ON

[SteelTown]

Oh god please be good news about terminal expansion.

[SteelTown]

Probably about this.....

Originally Posted by SteelTown

Proposed airport expansions go to council

http://www.thespec.com/news/local/ar...-go-to-council

Hamilton airport officials will seek $25.3 million from Ottawa and the province for three airport infrastructure projects they say will create thousands of new jobs.

The proposed plans, which will total $38 million, would allow more air cargo operators to land in the city with construction of a cargo apron, creation of a refrigerated cross-dock for perishable items such as pharmaceutical products and extension of the existing runway.

The necessary funding will be shared equally between the provincial and federal levels of government and TradePort International Corporation, said Richard Koroscil, CEO of John C. Munro International Airport. “This is not a cost to the city at all … at the end of the day, the biggest winner is actually the city.”

The request will be discussed by city councillors Monday.

A $6-million cargo apron and taxiway, a $12-million multi-tenant cargo facility and a $20-million runway extension will be the first phase of infrastructure developments at the airport, Koroscil said.

Councillor Lloyd Ferguson said he was supportive of the proposal because it would not cost the city and because the runway extension would facilitate flight takeoffs and landings in different wind conditions.

The plan to lengthen the airport’s runway by 3,000 feet southwest allows it to handle larger aircraft and ease landings during low visibility, crosswind conditions.

Because of snow or rain during the fall or early winter season, some carriers have to land at other locations, Koroscil said. “It will improve our reliability during certain weather conditions … This would allow us to make sure carriers, when they land, land in Hamilton,” he said.

The proposed multi-tenant cargo facility will consist of an 80,000-square-foot cross-dock, a truck receiving area with a live-animal centre and the ability to refrigerate perishable cargo such as flowers and fruits.

Currently, carriers with such items end up going to an American airport, for example, Koroscil said. “Instead of going to the U.S. to be transported by truck, they can go right out of Hamilton,” he said.

The proposed 40,000 square-metre cargo apron and widened taxiway are also intended to keep cargo carriers from relocating to another airport.

The expansion would also bring more jobs to the city, Koroscil said. “We all know that we’re in a circumstance where jobs are so important … and this is a sector which is one of the top growing sectors.”

If funding is approved, the projects will begin in the spring or summer and be completed in two years.

In May, TradePort had requested the city endorse a $98-million proposal that included a fourth project: a $60-million terminal expansion to accommodate more passengers. But upon feedback from Ontario indicating the funding request was too large, the corporation is seeking funding in two phases.

They plan to seek funding for the remaining project in a couple of years, Koroscil said.

[urban_planner]

I wonder if it had anything to do with all the work going on at the South West corner of Upper James and Dickenson? They have cleared out the trees and been working on levelling the area! Even been working on weekends!

[SteelTown]

That's likely for the runway extension. Looks like Thursday's announcement is about expanding the cargo business and not the passenger terminal. Would be nice to spruce up the terminal and land that new regional WestJet hub.

[urban_planner]

something else I just notice on the website is no mention really of the cargo operators who are the ones that are keeping the airport busy!

[LikeHamilton]

Originally Posted by urban_planner

something else I just notice on the website is no mention really of the cargo operators who are the ones that are keeping the airport busy!

http://flyhamilton.ca/passenger/news...facts-figures/

[LikeHamilton]

Originally Posted by urban_planner

I wonder if it had anything to do with all the work going on at the South West corner of Upper James and Dickenson? They have cleared out the trees and been working on levelling the area! Even been working on weekends!

The property is owned by Orlick Industries Limited (David Braley). I talked to the workers a couple of weeks ago and they said they are preparing to put in more streets in the area and that some of the land is for sale but part is for at least one or more new buildings.

[SteelTown]

$12 million cargo handling terminal.

[SteelTown]

New Cargo Facility at Hamilton International Airport to Boost Region's Economy

http://www.marketwire.com/press-rele...my-1744475.htm

HAMILTON, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Jan. 10, 2013) - Local businesses, cargo carriers and freight shippers will soon benefit from major infrastructure improvements to the Hamilton International Airport, thanks to a joint funding initiative announced today by the Honourable Lisa Raitt, Minister of Labour and Member of Parliament for Halton, and the Honourable Bob Chiarelli, Ontario Minister of Infrastructure and Minister of Transportation.

A 60,000-square-foot cross-dock will be built to accommodate the growing air cargo business at the John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport. This new facility will include multiple truck docks; refrigeration for perishables such as flowers, fruits and vegetables and pharmaceutical products; a live animal centre; as well as cargo and courier handling facilities.

"Hamilton International Airport is a growing gateway for international trade and this new cargo facility will help the region's economy remain competitive and well-positioned for the future," said Minister Raitt. "Our infrastructure investments are an important driver of economic growth and job creation here in Ontario and across Canada."

"The Hamilton International Airport serves as an international gateway to south-western Ontario so our government is very pleased to be able to support its improvement," said Minister Chiarelli. "This is another example of Ontario's commitment to public infrastructure that contributes to long-term economic growth for the region and the province."

"The airport is a city-owned asset that has seen huge growth in cargo operations in recent years," said Bob Bratina, Mayor for the City of Hamilton. "This strategic investment will allow the airport to continue to develop Hamilton's air cargo business, providing more economic benefits to the city and region."

"I am thrilled with today's investment by the provincial and federal governments." said Frank Scremin, President and CEO, John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport. "It recognizes the importance of Hamilton as a transportation gateway at both a provincial and national level. We are very proud to have one of the strongest domestic air cargo distribution networks in Canada; this facility will provide an opportunity to expand upon existing business by allowing a greater variety of goods to be moved through the Airport."

The governments of Canada and Ontario are delivering an $8 million joint investment for the construction of this new facility. An additional $4 million is being invested by TradePort International Corporation, the management body responsible for the airport. The total eligible cost of this initiative is $12 million.

Under the Building Canada plan, Canada and Ontario have partnered to provide strategic funding for priority infrastructure needs. Through the Provincial-Territorial Base Fund, the Government of Canada is providing $175 million to strengthen infrastructure in Ontario.

Since 2006, the Government of Canada has made unprecedented investments in public infrastructure. Through the Gas Tax Fund alone, municipalities across the country have received over $10 billion in transfers for local infrastructure priorities. Making this fund permanent at $2 billion annually is part of Canada's Economic Action Plan - a plan to help create good jobs, economic growth and long-term prosperity. The City of Hamilton will receive more than $123 million from the Gas Tax Fund alone between 2010 and 2014 to improve infrastructure in the region.

These investments also support Building Together, the Government of Ontario's long-term infrastructure plan to repair, rebuild and renew the province's roads and highways, bridges, public transit, schools and postsecondary institutions, hospitals and courthouses. Since 2003, Ontario has invested approximately $75 billion in infrastructure. Building modern, efficient infrastructure has created or preserved close to 100,000 jobs each year, on average, making Ontario's economy more productive and improving quality of life, now and in the future.

[SteelTown]

Apparently this announcement will lead to more jobs announcement in the near term.

[coalminecanary]

[markbarbera]

It must burn you to see expansion at the airport. When will you be posting graphs for YHM's cargo business? That is what the expansion money is going towards.

Although I did hear from someone that the refrigerated cargo hold is actually being built so all the secret residential developers have somewhere to keep their lunch while they build their sprawl houses once the super secret airport employment lands/residential sprawl conspiracy has been completed.

[coalminecanary]

I believe the itenerant movements includes cargo. It is every flight that leaves or arrives to hamilton from another airport.

What burns me is wasting money. Read your own signature. I'm tired of being Peter, aren't you?

Tradeport already doesn't pay taxes.

Did you read this announcement? 2/3 of the funding from this is public. That's our money. Will this gift to them make them successful enough to start paying their way? Or will their next move be to say "Well we can't be successful until we get [insert next publicly funded facility here]"

Tradeport is Paul.

[markbarbera]

The aircraft movements numbers can easily be misinterpreted (or misrepresented). There was the failed flyglobespan passenger airline, but that accounted for a fraction of the change in these numbers. YHM used to allow small personal aircraft to operate from the airport, and this was eliminated several years ago. This is the lion's share in reduced aircraft movements displayed on that graph. Also, improved runway lengths mean that larger cargo crafts can now fly in - more cargo on fewer flights.

Personally, I welcome public funds coming to the city if it means our infrastructure is improved as a result. The City of Hamilton is owner of the airport after all (Tradeport manages it for us), and the city is the ultimate beneficiary of any public funding that goes into the airport. I welcome the funding just as enthusiastically as I would any other infrastructure investment in the city.

Will we be seeing a graph showing the cargo business growth over the past five years? Surely you have that graph prepared as well...

[coalminecanary]

I don't want the airport to fail. I'd just like to see the money flow the other way - I want the investment in this city to be well guided. Tradeport has been running the show for a decade and a half and despite the occasional small win, the airport has not been successful. How long must we wait? If we are going to ignore passenger numbers then we need to start questioning the passenger terminal costs.

Hopefully this will be the start of a new era for the airport. I just don't see it. Pardon my skepticism.

[drpgq]

I'd prefer to see a graph of cargo tonnage, considering the announcement. I'm
not a big fan of obfuscation.

Originally Posted by coalminecanary

[coalminecanary]

I'm not trying to obfuscate. The charts I showed are based on valid data. If someone can point me toward cargo figures I'll graph those too.

Are my questions not valid about when the subsidies will end and the benefits will start to kick in? 15 years of no property taxes and 10/15 years of no rent paid doesn't sit well with me. Does does questioning this make me evil or something?

[markbarbera]

Tradeport did pay property taxes last year. All the cargo operators at the airport also pay tax to the city. When the city was running the airport it was losing money hand over fist. With Tradeport managing it, the opposite is now the case.