CITY COUNCIL MAY LAND NEW AIRLINE LEASE AGREEMENT
The Tyler City Council is expected to decide Wednesday whether to grant a new airline lease agreement with Colgan Airlines, which contracts with Continental Airlines to provide service from Tyler to Houston.
Council discussions on rates charged for carrier lease space are scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. in the city council chambers at City Hall, 212 N. Bonner Ave.
Airport manager Davis Dickson said airport leases are renewed periodically.
Colgan has been operating most recently on a month-to-month basis, pending changes in service and availability, Dickson said.
In March, American Eagle chose to reduce the number of daily flights from seven to four. The flights were reduced last month to combat proposed changes to the Wright Amendment, airline officials said.
People continued to fly, but they increasingly chose Continental, which recently beefed up service in Tyler with bigger planes and one additional daily flight, for a total of six, said Mayor Joey Seeber.
The Wright Amendment dates to the early 1970s when the city of Dallas began taking steps to close Love Field to avoid taking business from the then-new Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
The Wright Amendment restricts the airline's service to limited points in Texas and neighboring states in an effort to protect DFW.
The dispute between the air carriers now is whether there is enough business in the Dallas-Fort Worth area to support two airports.
In other council agenda items, the panel is expected Wednesday to honor retiring labor pool manager Tommy Cornstubble.
Also slated for recognition: library circulation manager Judy Curtis, a 25-year library employee; and police officer Randall Vaught, a 20-year department veteran, for their years of service.
In the consent agenda, the council is expected to consider the following: