AIRPORT GROWTH: CREATING NEW ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES

This report focuses on how to incorporate airports into the local economic development strategy by understanding how they operate, which industries benefit from proximity to an airport, and what land-uses are compatible for real estate adjacent to the air facilities. Among the issues examined are marketing the airport and the surrounding land; promoting appropriate zoning policies to ward off residential encroachment; and the role of the practitioner in transforming an airport into a stimulus for the local economy. The report is organized around three primary themes relating to airport development and economic impact. Those themes represent three ways in which airports generate local economic activity and consequently economic growth. They are: 1) on-site development aimed at improving airport service for users, including carriers, passengers, and cargo users; 2) airport employment, such as baggage handling or retail work, that exerts a direct economic impact; and 3) the regional economic role of an airport in terms of business development and land use.