WAMA NEWS - MailChimp€¦ · January 2020 Volume 5, Issue 1 Inside this issue: Executive Director 1 History Link 2 Upcoming Events 2 Meet Our Associ-ates—Airside Solu-tions 3 Airport

The year 2020 is the start of my fifth year with

WAMA, and as Executive Director, I’ve seen

the organization grow as a more encompass-

ing and professional organization over these

past few years.

Much of the growth of WAMA is due to the

strong leadership of our president, Tim Men-

sonides, who has done an outstanding job of

bringing forth new suggestions and keeping

the organization on track. Along with that, are

the committee chairmen, who have pushed to

move the organization forward. Although

each has responsibilities for their own airport

jobs, each of our committee chairmen are

dedicated, serious, and always come through

with a quality product at the end. We thank

those who have served on

the Board this past year and

welcome the newly elected

members, Adam Phelps as

president, Rich Mueller as vice president and

Brandon Rakes as director. A special thanks

goes to John Haakenson and Kelly Thompson

who have led the Conference Committee for

many years and will be leaving the Board.

The conferences have become bigger and

better with a boost in attendance, quality

speakers, and greater sponsorship. The 2020

conference will be at Sun Mountain Lodge near

Winthrop, Washington, and I urge you all to

attend. Registration information is available on

Executive Director Report

WAMA NEWS

www.wama.us January 2020 Volume 5, Issue 1

Inside this issue:

Executive Director 1

History Link 2

Upcoming Events 2

Meet Our Associ-

ates—Airside Solu-

tions

3

Airport Spotlight—

Sequim Valley

4

Annual WAMA

Conference Report

6

New Drone ID Rule 7

Welcome New Air-

port Managers

7

Sea-Tac’s New IAF 7

Airport Tour High-

lights

8

Welcome to the New Board!

President Adam Phelps

Do you know?

-That in the 10 years

between 2007 and 2017

Sea-Tac’s International

Travel grew by 107%?

(See page 7)

-What airport offers tiny

houses for vacation

stays? (See page 5)

-How long did the first

flight last in 1911 at

Snohomish? (See page 2)

Vice President Rich Mueller

Secretary Lorene Robinson

Treasurer Sara Young

Director 4 Rob Peterson

Director 3 Rob Hodgman

Director 2 Jennifer Skoglund

Director 1 Brandon Rakes

Past President Tim Mensonides

Associate Rep. David Field

Continued on page 2

By Marjy Leggett

On Sunday, May 7, 1911, Fred J. Wiseman

(1876-1961) makes the first powered flight in

Snohomish County, near the town of

Snohomish. Due to severe wet weather the

preceding day, Wiseman's craft, a Curtiss-

Wright-Farman biplane, is able to achieve

only about 60 feet altitude before its pilot

makes a rough landing at the nearby Bateman

farm. The entire flight lasts for less than a

minute in duration.

An Aviation Pioneer

Proclaimed at the time as a remarkable, per-

haps unique event for a Northwest communi-

ty the size of Snohomish, the first airplane

flight in Snohomish County history occurred

on the afternoon of Sunday, May 7, 1911, just

north of the present Harvey Airfield.

At the controls was Fred J. Wiseman, a former

racecar driver from California. He had been

flying only a year but had some noteworthy

accomplishments to his credit. In May 1910

he piloted the

first airplane

built in Cali-

fornia. In Jan-

uary 1911 he

placed second

in an air race

at Selfridge

Field in San

Francisco,

competing

against professional Curtiss pilots H. A. Rob-

inson and Lincoln Beachey. At the same meet

he ran up the longest sustained flight (more

than six minutes) and spent a total of 49

minutes 43 seconds in the air, the greatest

accumulated air time of the entire contest.

The following month, flying the same aircraft

he brought to Snohomish, Wiseman carried

mail between Petaluma and Santa Rosa, a

feat later recognized as the first airmail flight

in U.S. history. Link to the whole story

https://www.historylink.org/File/8491

this newsletter issue.

If you have an airport-related question, there

are many knowledgeable WAMA members

who will eagerly share their experiences, sug-

gestions, and solutions. Take advantage of

this wealth of knowledge network and send

your questions to me. I will forward your

request to the membership and can guaran-

tee you will receive a number of suggestions

to help with your situation.

WAMA’s mission is to strengthen airports and

airport management by fostering profession-

alism among airport operators. If we can

help you or if you have an idea that can help

others, please share. As your Executive Di-

rector, I am always glad to help you in any

way I can, so please reach out.

To all of you, a Happy, Healthy New Year in

2020!

Marjy

the website at www.wama.us.

The airport tours have been popular, giving mem-

bers a chance to tour other airports, ask ques-

tions, and pick up ideas that can be applied to

their own field. Thanks to Walla Walla, Arlington,

Moses Lake, and Paine Field this past year for wel-

coming WAMA members to their facilities. If you

would like to host an airport tour, please contact

us and we will work with you to schedule a time

to visit.

The bi-weekly WAMA Waypoints news bulletin,

started in 2018, is a platform for you to post an-

nouncements, requests, or items for sale. It also

keeps you abreast with the latest news happen-

ings at WAMA. Please contact me at direc-

[email protected] if you have news you would like to

share.

The Strategic Planning Committee has updated

the mission statement and goals for WAMA,

which were approved at the fall Board of Direc-

tors meeting. Check them out on page eight of

….Executive Director Continued

Page 2 WAMA NEWS

SAVE THE

DATES

2020

Jan. 14—Airport

Awareness Day—

Olympia

Jan. 16— Aviation

Caucus at 7:00

a.m. in Cherberg

Building, Olympia

Feb. 13— Aviation

Caucus at 7:00

a.m. in Cherberg

Building, Olympia

Feb. 22-23 — North-

west Aviation Con-

ference & Trade

Show– Puyallup

June 1-3 — WAMA –

Conference — Sun

Mountain Lodge

— Winthrop

HISTORY LINK: 1911—First Powered Flight in Snohomish County

Fred Wiseman and his wife in

1911

Volume 5, Issue 1 Page 3

What’s Happening

at WAMA?

Your Members at

Work

HUMAN RESOURCES

COMMITTEE

Year-end activities have

been keeping your WAMA

Human Resource Com-

mittee busy!

The Nominating Com-

mittee, under the auspices

of the Human Resources

Committee, put forth to

membership a great slate

of candidates for WAMA

Board positions. Welcome

to Rich Mueller and Bran-

don Rakes! In 2020 the

board will be made up of

the following: Adams

Phelps, President, Rich

Mueller, Vice-President,

Lorene Robinson, Secretary,

Sara Young, Treasurer,

Brandon Rakes, Director #1,

Jennifer Skoglund, Director

#2, Rob Peterson, Director

#3 and Rob Hodgman, Di-

rector #4.

The HR Committee also just

completed the annual re-

view of our Executive Direc-

tor Marjy Leggett. Our or-

ganization is fortunate to

have Marjy and the leader-

ship skills she brings to

WAMA.

—Jennifer Skoglund

Human Resources

Airside Solutions Inc., (ASI) is

located in Auburn, WA and is

a full line supplier of airfield /

heliport lighted navigational

systems, equipment and

technical services. They serve

the State of Washington and

the entire Pacific Northwest,

including Alaska and the US

territorial Pacific Islands.

Recent Washington State

airfield projects completed

include Seatac Runway 16C

Rehabilitation that installed

the 1st LED High Intensity

airfield lighting at SEA on the

RW 16C edge, centerline, and

touchdown zones. The run-

way distance to go and taxi-

way informational signs were

also upgrade to LED.

Spokane selected AirSide

Solutions this past year as the

supplier for their 2019 Ramp

Lighting LED Upgrade. All

commercial airline gate areas

were upgraded from older

technology HID lamp sources

to LED fixtures that greatly

enhance visibility and opera-

tional safety.

Airside Solutions has recently

been chosen to be the suppli-

er of the airfield lighting

equipment on the Grant

County I.A. RW 14L-32R Line

of Sight (LOS) Rehabilitation

project. As reported by Vice

President / Region Manager

Rick Lafferty, they will be

partnering with The Port of

Moses Lake, Granite Con-

struction and Neppel Electric

to provide the most techni-

cally advanced products and

systems to the project.

The primary lighting systems

to be installed will be:

• New High Intensity Runway

lighting.

• New Medium Intensity

Taxiway lighting

• New LED Runway Distance

Remaining & Taxiway Di-

rectional signage.

• New LED Runway End Iden-

tifier Light flashing system.

• Infrared Military Overt /

Covert RW lighting system.

• Runway 5kv cable replace-

ment.

Per Mr. Lafferty, the ASI team

that will be supporting the

Grant County I.A. project

includes the Project Manage-

ment, Sales Support, Tech-

nical Services and Operations

Departments.

Key ASI personnel include Presi-

dent / CEO Ronald Nelson and

Office Manager Cait Goodman

in Operations. Senior Sales Sup-

port Randy Ashby, along with

Warehouse Manager Jeff Eng-

lert and Conrad Alaniz in Ship-

ping / Receiving insure timely

product deliveries. The ASI

Technical Services Department

will be on-site during control

system commissioning, includ-

ing Tech Service Manager Gor-

don Winburn and Technician

Gregorio Esteban. Jake Nelson /

Senior Account Manager, will

be assisting Rick in project man-

agement.

You can learn more about all

products and services available

from AirSide Solutions at:

www.airsidesolutionsinc.com

Or you can contact Rick Lafferty directly at:

[email protected]

Meet Our Associate Members

AIRPORT OWNERSHIP & MANAGEMENT

Sequim Valley Airport is cur-rently operated by Andy and Jane Sallee, assisted by a Board of Directors totaling 8 people with varied aviation backgrounds. The Sallee family currently owns over 70% of the corporation’s stock with the remaining stock being owned by 24 additional long-term investors. Current reve-nues come from tie-downs, landing fees, fuel sales, hangar rental, association dues, and airpark lot sales. The airport operates with volunteer help.

HISTORY

Sequim Valley Airport was originally founded in 1983 when the Sallee Family identi-fied a need for a community public use airport for Sequim. The airport project began when airport founders Jack and Winnie Sallee purchased 55 acres where the main part of the airport is now located. The location was selected for its ideal flying environment, including a large level valley area between the Olympic Mountains to the south and the Strait of Juan de Fuca to the north. At that time there were 12 additional investors that helped finance the con-struction of the airport in trade for stock in the airport’s “Sub Chapter S” corporation. An Environmental Assessment and public hearing process

ABOUT Sequim Valley Airport (W28) is a privately owned, open for public use airport and resi-dential airpark located in the rain shadow of the Olympic Mountains, three miles north-west of sunny Sequim, Wash-ington on the north side of the Olympic Peninsula. Conse-quently, Sequim has an aver-age annual rainfall of only seventeen inches giving the area the reputation of being the “Blue Hole” of the Pacific Northwest. This benefits the airport by providing condi-tions suitable for VFR ap-proaches on most days of the year. With spectacular moun-tain views in a rural setting we believe this is one of the most beautiful airports in Washington State. Sequim Valley Airport features a 3500’ x 40’ paved, lighted runway 9/27 at an elevation of 144’. Tie downs and car

parking are available. The air-port is used mostly by local general aviation pilots for both pleasure and business flying. These pilots usually have planes that are based in a T- hangar, outside tie down, or at Discovery Trail Farm Airpark. There are a frequent number of transient aircraft that fly in from other locations as tour-ists, to meet family, friends or conduct business with other local companies.

were completed and permits were obtained after which construction took place. Through the effort, dreams, contributions and volunteer work of many local people the airport came into existence and by 1985 had a paved run-way.

LOCAL BENEFITS

Sequim and eastern Clallam County are fortunate to have an airport that makes a sub-stantial contribution to the local area and economy over the years. This public use air-port was built and operated at no cost to the local taxpayers. If this airport were to be built today, obtaining open land and acquiring building permits would be difficult if not impos-sible. To achieve what we have today could easily ex-ceed $10 million in costs if constructed by a government entity.

AIRPORT OVERLAY DISTRICT

In 2007 a new Airport Overlay District was established in cooperation with Clallam County which created addi-tional zoning definitions and airspace protection. This gives the airport additional flexibil-ity over previous zoning that was more restrictive for air-port related development.

AIRPORT LAYOUT PLAN

Century West Engineering has been developing our first ALP

INTRODUCING SEQUIM VALLEY AIRPORT (W28)

Page 4 WAMA NEWS

AIRPORT SPOTLIGHT

Continued on page 5

SCHOLARSHIP COMMITTEE The WAMA Scholarship

Committee is happy to

report that all four pro-

grams, the Thomas Eller

Scholarship, Professional

Development Grant, Com-

munity Aviation Education

Grant, and Internship

Grant were all awarded to

worthy applicants in

2019. This is the first time

in several years all four

programs have been

awarded, and we look

forward to 2020 and an-

other successful

round. The application

period for all scholarship

programs is February 1 –

March 31 each year. The

committee will be up-

dating the forms over the

next couple of months and

begin our outreach to in-

form potential applicants

about the pro-

grams. Please feel free to

email Rob Hodgman at

[email protected]

if you have any questions.

—Rob Hodgman

Scholarship Committee

Sequim Valley Airport , a busy

and vibrant field, welcomes the

many guests and airport users.

and is in the final stages of completion. We are excited to have an ALP which helps us in our long- term planning and possible funding opportuni-ties from WSDOT in the fu-ture.

DISCOVERY TRAIL FARM AIR-PARK

As time moved forward, an airpark was established by Dave LeRoux and Walt John-son on land bordering the airport and is connected to the runway by a paved taxi-way. Discovery Trail Farm Airpark is a premier neighbor-hood for aviation enthusiasts. Located at the northwest cor-ner of Sequim Valley Airport, the airpark partners with the airport to provide a great place to live for pilots and their families. We feel it may be the best-designed airpark in the country. It is a neigh-borhood of 15 homes sur-rounded by 52 acres of dedi-cated farmland-farmland that will never be developed. Eve-ryone has a 52-acre backyard that someone else mows. We think this is the perfect blend of urban and country living.

TINY HOUSE CABIN RENTALS

Two tiny house vacation cabins were added to the airport in 2018 through a partnership with Wolf Indus-tries. Guests can fly in, bike in, or drive in. Our 2 cozy Sequim vacation rental cab-ins are conveniently located at Sequim Valley Airport and border the Olympic Discov-ery Trail. Both cabins fea-ture mindful design includ-ing an eat in kitchen, living room area, 1 bedroom with a Queen size memory foam mattress and luxury bed-ding. Other guest amenities include a full-size bathroom,

washer/dryer, and propane appliances and bicycles. These can be reserved using AirBnB.

OLYMPIC PENINSULA AIR AFFAIRE

Sequim Valley Airport hosts the Olympic Peninsula Air Affaire / Fly-In. This annual event features antique plane exhibitions, classic car show, hot air balloon rides, helicop-ter rides, remote control air-craft, aerial demonstrations, aviation crafts, music, food and more. The event is a lot of fun and provides us with a great opportunity to show off the airport, demonstrate what the airport provides and the benefits of having a local

aviation community. An esti-mated 3500 people attended the 7th Annual Air Affaire last summer. The 2020 Air Affaire and Fly-In will take place on August 29th 2020.

RECENT & UPCOMING PRO-JECTS

Recent upgrades include hangar remodel, new above-ground, 100LL, self- service fuel tank, and tiny house rentals which provide in-creased revenue. The airport has great potential for future income. Other recent pro-jects include a new website,

runway signs, and parking lot upgrades. Upcoming projects for 2020 include removal of the old underground fuel tank along with soil testing. Repav-ing the entry road into the airport and fueling area is also on the list for 2020.

THE FUTURE & INVESTMENT OPPOTUNITIES

Sequim Valley Airport is home to Discovery Trail Farm Airpark, as well as a great investment opportunity. The area is unique in that it has the driest climate of any public use airport in Western Washington. The airport has excellent long-term potential for any future owners. The close proximity to Puget Sound and the Seattle area make it an ideal home-base or investment property. The airport is owned by Sequim Valley Airport Inc., a Wash-ington Corporation, and has 26 shareholders. Our private investors come from a varie-ty of different backgrounds and have been a significant and deeply valued part of the airport’s success. Running the airport is a lot of fun and quite rewarding but as the primary owners are ap-proaching retirement, we have reached a point with the airport where we plan to find a new buyer or majority shareholder who shares the vision that we have enjoyed with the community over the

last 35 years. We’re looking for an individual or organiza-tion that would be interested in further development of

...Sequim Valley Airport Continued

Volume 5, Issue 1 Page 5

Continued on page 6

MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE

The WAMA Membership

Committee recently

worked with Treasurer

Young on emailing out

notices to the membership

informing them how to

sign up for a banner ad-

vertisement on the WAMA

website for the 2020 cal-

endar year.

By purchasing a banner for

the WAMA website, your

organization will get the

opportunity to advertise

its logo on WAMA’s

homepage and a chance

to be featured in our quar-

terly newsletter!

The committee is currently

preparing to send mem-

bership 2020 renewal no-

tices out on January 1st.

—Lorene Robinson

Membership Committee

Sponsorships and Speakers

WAMA thanks those who have already con-

tributed sponsorships to the 2020 WAMA Con-

ference. The Conference Committee is contin-

uing to seek sponsorships. Information on how

you can be a sponsor is available on the

WAMA website: https://wama.us/

Sponsorship-Opportunities .

As the agenda is being developed, the Confer-

ence Committee is also seeking speakers. If

you know of a top speaker who has an inter-

esting topic, please contact Kelly Thompson

[email protected] (509) 375-3060 or

Dianne Wakefield (509) 547-6352

[email protected] .

2021 Conference Selection

The committee visited Bremerton, Olympia,

and Alderbrook seeking locations for the 2021

WAMA Conference. After careful considera-

tion, the committee selected Alderbrook and

will finalize details in the coming month.

New Committee Chairman

We welcome Samantha Peterson as the new

Conference Committee chairman and thank

John Haakenson and Kelly Thompson for their

years of dedication into making the annual

conference such an outstanding event.

2020 WAMA Conference It is not too early to register and to make reser-vations for the 2020 WAMA Conference. This year’s conference will be held at the Sun Mountain Lodge near Winthrop, WA from June 1-3. Registration is available on our website at https://wama.us/event-3646472 . We recommend making your lodge reservations early. There are no other hotels close by. To make a reservation, call 800-572-0493 or 509-996-2211 and tell them you are with the Wash-ington Airport Management Association. The code is 45N9AR. Below is a list of room rates. Note that your credit card will be charged one night’s lodging when you make your reserva-tion. Main Lodge—$154 per night Mt. Gardner—$154 Mt. Robinson—$154 Patterson Lake Cabin—1 Bedroom—$162 Patterson Loft Suites—$222 Patterson Grand Suites—2 Bedroom—$378 Sun Mountain Lodge is family friendly with play-ground equipment, horse riding, many trails to walk, and much more. Visit their website at www.sunmountainlodge.com for more infor-mation.

Make Plans Now for the 2020 WAMA Conference

Page 6 WAMA NEWS

LEGISLATIVE

COMMITTEE

this beautiful facility including a possible restaurant, event center, additional hangars, corporate hangars, and aviation-related businesses. We feel the future and potential for this airport and facility is excellent.

Please view our websites for more infor-mation.

Airport Site: www.sequimvalleyairport.com

Airpark Site: www.discoverytrailfarmairpark.com

Investment Site: www.sequimairports.com

Air Affaire Site: www.olympicpeninsulaairffaire.com

...Sequim Airport Continued

The Legislative Committee

is gearing up for the 2020

State Legislative Session

and for Airport Awareness

Day on January 14th. The

committee has met and is

in the process of setting its

goals. Updates will appear

in the biweekly WAMA

Waypoints bulletin.

Susie Tracy, our WAMA

lobbyist, has been offered a

contract for this coming

year.

Rob Peterson

Legislative Committee

FAA on December 26, 2019 released its proposed rule for drone remote identification, kicking off a process that's taken years to unveil.

The rule, which would require drone operators to broadcast identification and location infor-mation, has long been seen as a necessary prerequisite for other broad expansions of drone oper-ations, like beyond the visual line of sight or over people, but was slowed down by the necessity of first legislating around law enforcement authority with regard to drones.

You can read the notice of proposed rulemaking here. Public comment is invited for the next 60 days.

To view online: https://subscriber.politicopro.com/transportation/whiteboard/2019/12/faa-publishes-drone-remote-id-rule-3975314

FAA Publishes Drone Remote ID Rule

Public Comments Open Until February 24

Volume 5, Issue 1 Page 7

AIRPORT

COMMITTEE

The end of 2019 for the

Airport committee end-

ed on a quiet note with

setting up the last tour

for 2019 at Paine Field

with the first privately

funded terminal in the

State of Washing-

ton. The committee will

be handed over to the

new chair, Rich Mueller,

for 2020. A core part of

the airport committee is

having membership

that covers all sizes and

types of airports. If you

would like to join the

committee, please

reach out to me, Adam

Phelps or Rich

Mueller. Dates for 2020

meetings should be

coming out soon!

—Adam Phelps Airport Committee Chair

JOHN ROE

WAMA welcomes John Roe, who has taken the position of managing the Lewis County air-ports—Toledo and Packwood. John is excited about the projects he will be leading and WAMA wishes him all the best in his new endeavor.

RODNEY PROPST

Rod just joined the Pierce County Airports as airport manager and assistant ferry manager

as of mid-December. He will be overseeing Tacoma Narrows and Thun Field. WAMA wel-

comes him to Washington and to the WAMA family.

Welcome New Airport Managers!

In 2017, when leadership at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac) decided to build a

new International Arrivals Facility (IAF), they knew they had to leverage airport resources in a

cost-effective manner to enhance customer experience. At nearly 50 years old, the existing facil-

ity could no longer accommodate Sea-Tac’s demand for international travel, which grew 107

percent from 2007 to 2017.

To read more about this project, copy and paste this link into your browser:

http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/acrp/acrp_iop_059.pdf

By Tanya Snyder

Since our last newsletter, we have had several new airport managers join our aviation family.

WAMA welcomes them!

Sea-Tac’s New International Arrival Facility Gets an Upgrade

As reported from www.TRB.Org/ACRP Oct. 2019

Here are a few pictures from the two latest airport tours—Moses Lake’s Grant County (MWH) and Paine Field (PAE). Please

contact Rich Mueller or Adam Phelps if you would like to host a tour of your airport.

Kandace Harvey Harvey Field 9900 Airport Way Snohomish, WA 98296

Phone: 360-568-0834 Ext. 224 Fax: 360-568-0834 E-mail: [email protected]

www.wama.us

WASHINGTON AIRORT MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION

MISSION: To strengthen airports and airport management in Washington State by

fostering professionalism among airport operators.

GOALS:

1. Professionalism

Goal 1.a. Provide networking and educational opportunities for airport personnel and affili-

ates in Washington State.

Goal 1.b. Establish and maintain relationships with academic and vocational programs.

2. Legislative Action

Goal 2.a. Monitor rulemaking and inform membership.

Goal 2.b. Educate and where appropriate, advocate for policy positions on behalf of WAMA membership.

Goal 2.c. Establish and maintain relationships with key legislators and policy makers.

3. Organizational Efficiency

Goal 3.a. Manage WAMA in a financially sustainable manner.

Goal 3.b. Provide effective governance and staffing for WAMA.

Goal 3.c. Maintain effective committees for WAMA.

Airport Tours

Newsletter questions? Contact Marjy Leggett [email protected]

PAINE

FIELD

Attendees tour the

Paine Field Fire Sta-

tion and new Termi-

nal Facility.

GRANT

COUNTY

MOSES

LAKE

Boeing 737 planes parked

at Grant County Interna-

tional Airport

WAMA members had the

opportunity to tour inside a

C-130 aircraft.