Town Hall QA

Under the terms of the recently approved lease, the City of New Haven will provide the full $325,000 annual operating subsidy this fiscal year and half of the subsidy ($162,500) next fiscal year. After that, though the city will continue to own the airport, it won’t be obligated to contribute financially for the remainder of the 43-year lease since Avports has agreed to cover all associated costs. Additional key elements of the lease that was approved by the New Haven Board of Alders include:

• The extension of the airport authority’s $1-per-year lease of the city-owned airport land through June 30, 2064.
• The extension of the airport’s main runway from 5,600 feet to 6,635 feet long, as first spelled out in the airport’s master plan.
• A $5 million investment in mitigating traffic, noise, and environmental concerns in surrounding neighborhoods.
• The construction of a new four-to-six-gate passenger terminal and a new parking garage on the East Haven side of the airport property.
• Mandatory check-ins and performance reviews between the city and the airport authority every 10 years.
• Mandatory annual community meetings between the airport authority and alders from surrounding neighborhoods. Those meetings must be open to the public, and allow for public comment.
• The creation of an Environmental Stewardship Advisory Committee consisting of three New Haven residents and three East Haven residents, and to be staffed by New Haven’s Engineering Department.
• The requirement that the airport authority and airport management company study and, to the extent feasible, implement a passenger carbon offset program.