James Wright, who heads the Stewart Airport Commission, praised the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey”™s leadership at the commission”™s last meeting of 2007. He, like many on the panel, is ready to “move forward into 2008.”
State Sen. Bill Larkin concurred. “We”™ve been dwelling on the past ”“ it”™s time to move ahead and start talking about what”™s coming.”
Noting that in “just 26 days, the Port Authority has gotten more accomplished than we could ever dream,” Wright welcomed the new parking lot, the opening of Drury Lane ”“now Route 747 ”“ and additional seating to the baggage claim area. Those seats came in handy as holiday fliers packed the airport over the Thanksgiving holiday.
New airport manager Diannae Ehler said the Port Authority is working to complete the parking and plans to add security fencing, and is looking into installing EZ Pass booths. Shuttle buses were also encouraged to have regular routes, as well as telephones for passengers to call for transportation, and Ehler said she is putting together a plan to ensure seamless service from parking lot to terminal. “Remember, we had just a few short days to get this new lot ready, but we are going to provide the best possible service to our customers.”
As part of that commitment, Ehler introduced Gateway Services, which will provide “red coat” service for terminal passengers. With eye-catching red attire, Gateway”™s team directs passengers and gives assistance as the first point of contact for airport users.
AVPORTS, already managing the Port Authority”™s other airports, will run day-to-day operations at Stewart, said manager Robert Cusick.
National Express Group, the former operator of Stewart, also got a performance and monetary review by an independent auditor, Management Group of Bethesda, Md. Spokesman Jorge Gonzalez said it estimated National Express”™s rate of return on its initial purchase of Stewart in 1999 ($35 million) and subsequent investment of approximately $17 million. Some $35 million in additional improvements to the airport while it was privatized came from federal and state grants.
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Out of the sale amount, some $1.9 million went back to the state Department of Transportation for extra land National Express never paid for and another $1.7 million in various fees for the DOT”™s participation in the transfer.
At the end of the day, National Express walked away with about $24 million, earning it some 7.7 percent in returns after it negotiated to sell the remainder of the lease for $78.5 million earlier this year.
Lingering issues remain with the town of New Windsor but, overall, said Gonzalez, the audit found no major discrepancy to report.
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