The possibility that the city of Long Beach may lease some or all of the Long Beach Airport to private financial institutions captured local headlines last week, and is also starting to garner national attention.
A USA Today article yesterday highlights the story and provides a little perspective, mentioning similar instances across the nation and bringing up one of the concerns that some have voiced with the idea. Cue journalist Roger Yu:
Privatizing an airport would initially generate a financial windfall, but the controlling public entity — typically, a city government or an aviation authority — would relinquish operational control and future revenue to the private operator. Long Beach and several other cities are contemplating the option as airport revenue dwindles along with travel demand.
Of course, no details about the plan have been mentioned or made public or even discussed, as last week’s scheduled private meeting with the City Manager, City Council and others was canceled and will be rescheduled as a public meeting. No date has yet been mentioned for the forum.
By Ryan ZumMallen, Managing Editor