SAFFORD — Diversifying the local economy took a giant step forward with the Safford City Council’s unanimous decision to begin leasing land at the airport.
The resolution sets the city’s leasing policy, while ensuring leasing conforms to the FAA-approved Airport Layout Plan.
While there will be effort made to attract aviation-related businesses, Airport Manager Cameron Atkins said the city is also focusing on bringing in other types of industries that can take advantage of the airport’s location.
“We have a lot of land out there that doesn’t necessarily have to have an aviation business on it. Some of it doesn’t have access to the runways and taxiways at the airport,” he said. “It has a unique ability to house those businesses that loud or dirty; that people don’t want to have them Downtown or near homes. We don’t have any neighbors out there, so it’s a nice, unique opportunity for those businesses to be able to grow and develop.”
Atkins told the council that if multiple developers are interested in the same parcel of land, a competitive bid process will be initiated. However, rate of payment will not be the deciding factor in the winning bid; rather a board will determine which proposal is the “best use” of the land, comparing factors such as the proposed type of business, projected revenue, number of employees, etc.
Atkins also recently posted to social media that the airport is looking for local food trucks to park at the airport on weekends, to serve pilots flying in as well as anyone else visiting the airport.
