Representatives from Passero Associates took questions regarding an obstruction clearance project project at the Albert S. Nader Regional Airport at the Oneonta Common Council meeting Tuesday, Sept. 16.
At the start of the session, Matt Nissen, senior project manager at Passero — the Rochester-based engineering firm working on the project — provided some clarity on the overall project timeline. He said Passero’s work “only addresses current airport conditions as it relates to known airport obstructions in the airport runway approaches.” He said no airport expansion is being considered through this initiative.
Consisting of about six steps total, Nissen said that about nine years ago, the project was shown on the Airport Capital Improvement Plan. The Federal Aviation Administration said a master plan update was needed, which was finalized about five years ago. This plan identified different areas of airport obstruction, Nissan said.
The easement acquisition project was part of the city’s 2021 budget, Nissen said. He added that the third step of the process was the environmental assessment, required by National Environmental Policy Act. This was completed in 2022.
In February 2020, a public involvement meeting was held with landowners, Nissen said. During a 30-day public comment period on the draft assessment, no public comments were received, he added.
The city retained Passero associates as the airport consultant in November 2023. Prior to this, Passero was not involved.
“Following the FAA rules and guidance and details from the environmental assessment, Passero was hired by the city to negotiate offers to purchase avigation easements air rights from off-airport landowners,” Nissan said.
The city is now in the project’s fourth step, Nissan said — the easement acquisition purchase negotiation phase. The fifth step would be obstruction removal design and bidding, and the sixth phase would be the construction removal of obstructions.
According to a handout distributed at the meeting, an airport obstruction study found that “vegetative obstacles” were obstructing the air space. The acquisitions or avocation easements would allow the airport to “remove existing vegetation on off-airport properties currently affecting the navigable airspace.”
Shannon McHugh, D-Third Ward, said she had concerns about the letters landowners were initially sent from Passero, one of which referenced eminent domain.
“What’s happening in these letters is that you’re basically outlining how we can take their stuff from them,” McHugh said.
Shannon Fischer, another Passero representative, read aloud the letter that landowners were sent in June and said she stood by her professionalism.
“While there are instructions to airspace noted on your property, any actual tree removal will be fully coordinated with you, the property owner, in advance, after the acquisition is complete, and under a separate project,” the letter stated.
It also stated that future removal projects could include “restoration of disturbed ground.”
In a follow up email sent out in July, it included additional FAA guidance from its website for the land acquisition process, which mentioned the authority of the airport to execute eminent domain.
Kaytee Lipari Shue, D-Fourth Ward, said the section of the email mentioning eminent domain and condemning a person’s property if negotiation attempts are unsuccessful could be “intimidating.” She asked if the airport would decide how a property owner maintains their property under a land acquisition easement.
The easement is for airways specifically and not for anything below the approach surface,” Fischer said. “The city would need to manage any trees in the future that grew to surpass an acceptable length and caused any future obstructions.
“That’s when you get to that point where you negotiate how you leave the tree or what portion of the tree is cleared,” Fischer said.
Each owner’s property would be its own project, Nissen added. Fischer said during the appraisal process, appraisers would determine what types of changes would made to a given property under any construction. This determination would be factored into the appraisal.
Don Mathisen, D-Eighth Ward, asked if the easement could impact property values in the future. Nissan said it could potentially, and Fischer added that appraisals are done largely to compensate for property value that could be lost.
Later, he questioned if it would even be possible to assess the property value of people’s homes in the future with the market shifting so often.
McHugh asked if visits of appraisers to people’s property had been scheduled in advanced or if property owners were given notice, as the initial letter stated they would.
Only one property owners responded to the letter to tell them they needed seven to 10 days notice, Fischer said.
Len Carson, R-Fifth Ward, asked about using imaging technology, like LiDAR, to measure the property rather than going physically onto people’s land.
Fischer said determining the exact number of trees that will have to be cut in different properties is part of the design phase.
“I don’t even understand why we would go onto the property if the technology is already out there to bypass that,” Carson said.
Scott Harrington, R-Sixth Ward, later asked for clarity on how far air rights go and who owns them. City Attorney David Merzig said the city owns the air rights because it owns and operates the airport.
Mayor Mark Drnek said it could be a good idea to provide imaging and get factual data about where trees need to be cut. While the airport commission takes on its two new members, it could be a good place to breathe, he added.
At the end of the session, McHugh said she wanted to speak with Matt Kent, the airport manager. Drnek said “more accusations” would not have helped the situation and speaking with Kent was not on the agenda. While Kent attended the meeting, Drnek said he did not expect him to engage.
McHugh said that coming from the Human Rights Commission, she tries to emphasize connections with the community. She added that it was “disheartening” that she was not able to make that happen through a discussion with Kent at the meeting.