An airport feasibility study commissioned by the Long Beach City Council on the potential impact of an international terminal and federal customs facility at Long Beach Airport (LGB) has concluded the move would likely not violate the noise ordinance established, the city announced today.
The study also found that the international terminal and federal customs facility would bring in an estimated 350 jobs, but also cost between $13.1 and $16.4 million to build, depending on the construction option selected.
Long Beach City Council approved the feasibility study last January to determine if an international terminal at LGB would be economically viable and what kind of risks it might pose to the city by opening it up to international travel. The study coincided with a risk assessment of potential challenges the city’s noise ordinance might face from airlines by potentially opening the market in Long Beach to international flights.
The study largely emphasized that the noise ordinance, established in 1995, would not be affected if the international terminal is built, and includes memos relaying such information. Attached documents show JetBlue’s plan to substitute international flights for select domestic flights, not adding additional flights to the airport’s schedule.
“The Study assumed an activity level of 50 daily air carrier flights,” wrote the Jacobs Engineering Group, the firm tasked with evaluating the impact of an international terminal. “The Study acknowledges that the Noise Ordinance is indifferent to whether there are domestic or international operations.”
The firm concluded the taxiways and runway systems can support such a terminal, and suggested that reconfiguring the lanes and removing the curb at the loading and unloading zone in front of the airport would “ease vehicular flow.”
The financial impact analysis was perhaps the most revealing, comparing the airport’s current employment of 45,000 people, with an estimated $10.3 billion annual output to the additional estimated 350 jobs and $36.4 million in additional output that would be created.
The feasibility study will be presented to the public this month by Jacobs Engineering, and was made public at the request of the council, according to the City of Long Beach.