Taxiing for takeoff

Consider Anthony Shorris”™ visit a preflight run-through.

The executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey left the trappings of his Manhattan office to visit the Hudson Valley and speak of plans for Stewart International Airport, which is on the cusp of becoming a super-powered engine for major economic development in the region.

He offered a peek at the authority”™s plans last week with regional business and civic leaders during a luncheon in Newburgh.

No real surprises; Chuck Seliga is out as airport director and Nyack resident Diannae Ehler, who manages the Port Authority bus terminal and Lincoln Tunnel, is in. Jack Martini, chief operations supervisor at LaGuardia Airport and a Newburgh resident, will assist.

“Stewart is strategically positioned ”“ a lynchpin ”“ its greatest value will be the economic growth it will provide,” Shorris said.

We heartily agree.

The landlocked Westchester County Airport cannot be what can be envisioned for Stewart. Westchester functions well ”“ except for the lack of parking ”“ as an executives”™ airport, one that serves the business community for flights to major links such as Washington, D.C., Chicago and Atlanta. As far as it becoming an economic engine for the region, it”™s a pipe dream lacking smoking substance.

Westchester County should be one of the biggest cheerleaders for developing Stewart as a four-star major airport with easy accessibility that will eventually ”“ through careful planning ”“ prove an asset to Westchester and the Hudson Valley in attracting international business.

For every 1,000 tons of freight transported, “hundreds of jobs and $6 million of revenue will be generated,” Shorris said, which translates into employment opportunities for residents in the surrounding communities. He added this bit of enticement: Ninety-four percent of the workers at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey live in the community.

John Kasarda, an authority on aviation infrastructure, urban development and a major promoter of the aerotropolis, or airport city concept, has stated in a previous article on these pages that the lack of development ”“ on and off the airport property ”“ could work in its favor.

“It”™s not a complete blank canvas, but it”™s enough of an open canvas that (the Port Authority) can paint a pretty good picture on it.”

In January, in announcing the plan to pay $78.5 million for the remaining 93 years of a 99-year lease at Stewart from British-based National Express Corp., Shorris said: “We can turn that sleepy, underutilized facility into a dynamic transportation hub that will, along with our other investments in our regional airport system, allow us to meet the incredible growth in demand for air travel.”

A 50 percent increase in passenger flights is forecast by 2020, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. That, of course, means more flights out of Stewart. In playing to the community, Shorris said that a community advisory panel would be created. It would not mean the demise of the Stewart Airport Commission, which will remain in place.

Shorris said a revised master plan is in progress for what he depicted as a “complicated airport.”

As with any development, compromises are always part of the plan. The planning in this case must integrate the changes for Stewart with urban planning and business strategy. Kasarda, who stresses cluster over strip development, said “They all have to come together if the development is going to be economically efficient, aesthetically pleasing and environmentally sustainable.”

Stewart has a long way to go meet the goals of development outlined in Kasarda”™s airport city model, which has been used around the world from China to the giant airport complex now being created in Dubai. Infrastructure improvement will need to be made, along with the addition of transportation options such as buses and trains.

Exciting times are ahead for Stewart Airport and in turn for the region. We hope everything progresses in a positive and well thought-out manner so as to benefit the businesses and residents of the Hudson Valley.