Council Supports Closing Airport

The Chapel Hill Town Council unanimously passed a resolution supporting Chancellor James Moeser's plan to close the airport by the end of the year.

Town Council member Mark Kleinschmidt said the airport's usefulness has come to an end.

"We've always believed it's best not have the airport there," he said.

The closure of the airport, announced by the chancellor at an April 30 press conference, has drawn serious opposition from not only patrons of the airport but some state legislators in Raleigh.

The main point of contention is where to relocate the N.C. Area Health Education Centers program, which flies physicians to other parts of the state for seminars and consulting. AHEC houses its fleet and operates the program from the Horace Williams Airport.

Moeser has said the airport will not be closed until AHEC has a new home but has set the closure date for some time before the end of the year. The council re-emphasized the importance of keeping the airport operational until AHEC is relocated.

But legislation passed in the N.C. House's proposed budget would put control of the airport's future in the hands of the legislature and leave Moeser powerless to dictate what happens to the facility.

Rep. Verla Insko, D-Orange, said the placement of AHEC in a good facility is vital.

"It would not be a good idea to move AHEC before they have a new hangar," she said. "They should not share a hangar with another agency."

Insko expressed doubt as to whether the deadline for the airport's closure is reasonable in the first place.

"There's little reason to keep the airport open once AHEC is gone," Insko said. "But I doubt that will happen by December."

Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy said the town is committed to sticking with the University.

"A unanimous vote sends a pretty clear message that the town is united with the University," he said.

Foy said that beyond politics, the council wants the airport shut down merely because it sees the place as an accident waiting to happen. "The town, and the school for that matter, have long considered the airport to be a safety problem," he said.

These concerns are lent some credence as evidenced by three crashes in the last four years, although officials have said the incident did not prompt the airport's closure.

Kleinschmidt said the council's decision to back the airport's closure was a good opportunity to demonstrate the town's solidarity with UNC.

"(Chapel Hill) and the University get along better than most towns and universities," he said. "The reason the battles are memorable is because they don't happen that often."

The City Editor can be reached at citydesk@unc.edu.