Company gets $77 Million for an airport. From YOU.

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SUMMARY

The forum discussion centers on the controversial funding of a $77 million airport project in Akutan, Alaska, primarily backed by Trident, a seafood corporation. Trident contributed only $1 million, raising questions about the financial burden on taxpayers and the project's overall necessity given the town's small population of 100 residents. Participants debated the airport's potential economic impact, including job creation and transportation efficiency, while also comparing costs to other major airport projects, such as Atlanta's runway, which cost $1.28 billion. The discussion highlights concerns about public funding for private enterprises and the long-term benefits for the local community.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of public-private partnerships in infrastructure projects
  • Knowledge of airport construction costs and economic impact analysis
  • Familiarity with the seafood industry and logistics
  • Awareness of local government funding mechanisms and taxpayer implications
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the economic impact of public-private partnerships in airport development
  • Investigate the operational costs of commercial aircraft, specifically Boeing 737
  • Examine case studies of similar airport projects and their outcomes
  • Explore the logistics of seafood transportation and the role of air freight
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for policymakers, economic analysts, infrastructure developers, and professionals in the seafood industry who are interested in the implications of large-scale public funding for private projects and the economic viability of remote airports.

DoggerDan
This is just over the top: http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2011/10/07/tuchman-alaska-airport.cnn

How is it that Trident, a corporation, managed to talk those who control the purse strings into letting Trident pay just $1 Million while we pay more than $60 Million for an airport in a location that will often be unuseable (winds/weather). "This is not something that's being handed to us. It's something that we've earned."

Really? "You need to turn the camera off." Really?

What Congressman called in "favors" to get others to go in on this deal?
 
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Not from ME.
Nana nana boo boo... I'm Canadian. :-p
 
Anyone want to bet within one month of the airport's opening, the residents of Akutan will complain to the FAA about the noise? ;-)
 
I'm not sure how I feel about this one. The town has 100 people, but how many work at Trident, and how many other people (outside the 100) work there? What size airport are we talking about here? Would the airport allow the island to expand? Does the cost include a plane? I think a 737 runs about 50-60 million itself. It probably is a huge waste of money, but it looks to me like there is also a pretty big spin on this story. How long has that town been there? How much have they paid in for taxes that cover services that they will never use or see?
 
haha, they're going to use it to ship out seafood, aren't they? the price tag seems ridiculous for a landing strip, but i guess they've got to move a lot of earth/rock, eh?
 
Shoot, Trident has something like 1000 people working there so the subsidy is only $60,000 per employee. When compared to the hundreds of thousands of dollars PER JOB that we are paying to subsidize "green" jobs, it's a bargain.

Oh, wait ... two wrongs don't make a right.
 
QuarkCharmer said:
I'm not sure how I feel about this one. The town has 100 people, but how many work at Trident, and how many other people (outside the 100) work there?

The video to which I linked said 1,100, for a total of 1,200.

What size airport are we talking about here?

Haven't a clue, but I would imagine something like a 737. Speaking of which...

Would the airport allow the island to expand? Does the cost include a plane? I think a 737 runs about 50-60 million itself.

I think an airline would handle that aspect. I wonder how much it costs to ferry people by ship vs airplane?

It probably is a huge waste of money, but it looks to me like there is also a pretty big spin on this story. How long has that town been there?

Some of the buildings looked decades old.

How much have they paid in for taxes that cover services that they will never use or see?

This could be said about a lot of us!
 
It's not uncommon for the county or city to pave/upkeep roads in newly created residential areas. The same goes for roads, bypasses, bridges - many are built to accommidate a private entity more so than the public. Why is this much different?

Much of our nation's infrastructure is 'built on demand' and now there's a demand for a public airport there *shrug*. Is it a little much in austere times? Probably, but like was said earlier - how much are we paying for failed projects, whereas at least this project is a proven good and will be used by someone (at a much lower cost).
 
Maybe the question should be - why does a remote runway to ship seafood to the lower 48 cost $70 Million?
 
  • #10
WhoWee said:
Maybe the question should be - why does a remote runway to ship seafood to the lower 48 cost $70 Million?

Atlanta's 9000ft x 170ft runway cost $1.28 billion. However, that was probably rated for aircraft much larger than a 737, and also probably included all lighting and additional navigational aids. Here's another: " The runway and tower cost $457 million and took about three years to construct, including demolition of property on 126 acres of land in Des Plaines, Ill., the airport acquired." From: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203739404574290030754087254.html

And who said it's to ship seafood? Seafood keeps well enough on ice, and it's far cheaper to ship it via boat.

However, if one plane can ferry workers around the clock on 12-hr shifts while cutting transit time from several hours down to half an hour, that can make up for the cost of operating the aircraft. It's not that it's cheaper to ferry people by airplane. It's that it's cheaper to pay them for 30 min of their time than 3 hours.

Consider 1,100 workers a day currently on 12-hour shifts. Elevate that to 2,200 workers and it's 2.5 hours at, say, $10 an hour, times 2,200, or $55,000 per day.

Anyone know how much it costs to operate a 737?
 

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