Despite worries of hangar owners, the Longmont City Council approved changes to the master lease language to allow more protections for the city.
The council unanimously approved the change to the “base” lease language at Vance Brand Airport on Tuesday. According to staff, the language has been drafted to better align with industry standards and ensure compliance with Federal Aviation Administration grant assurances.
The biggest change sets the lease term to 30 years without a written option for renewal and grants the city the first right of refusal. A first right of refusal guarantees the city a say in properties that may be needed for long-range planning or for redevelopment efforts in the future.
The city believes that the previously used lease language runs counter to Federal Grant Assurances by allowing a lease to run over a 50-year time period. Leases over 50 years are considered a disposal of the property and should not be allowed, according to the FAA.
Several community members voiced their concerns about these terms.
“Basically at the end of 30 years your investment turns to zero if you can’t get a lease,” said Howard Morgan, president of Longmont Owners' and Pilots' Association. “It’s also devastating to people that own a hangar, because if they go to sell it, the next person who comes along unless they’re not in their right mind is not going to go for a $300,000 building with a lease that’s going to turn zero in 30 years.”
However, staff assured the council that this is just the base contract and that lessees can still negotiate the lease and renewals.
“There seems to be this idea that the city’s trying to take over all of the land once it's been leased once — this is just a provision in a contract,” Airport Manager Levi Brown said. “This is standard across the industry that allows, if we want to do some development, a little bit more control over the city’s own land.”
The airport advisory board made their own recommendations, different from staff recommendations, including shortening the election period for the first right of refusal from 30 days to seven days. Staff said this would not give the city enough time to process the case.
The lease change passed without the advisory board’s recommendations.
