WILLMAR -- Saying it's time to close the public checkbook, Mayor Les Heitke announced he'll veto a City Council decision to negotiate with an airport hangar owner for costs incurred for constructing airport hangar aprons.
Bill Graves asked the city to pay for a new $25,000 to $29,000 apron required for his hangar at the new airport. Graves said he paid the cost to build concrete aprons on two sides of his hangar at the old airport.
He said his situation was unique since most other hangars at the old airport did not have concrete aprons, and he said he had excessive relocation costs compared with other hangar owners.
The council's Finance Committee voted on Sept. 25 to recommend city staff negotiate with Graves on a satisfactory reimbursement of apron costs.
The council voted 5-3 Monday night to uphold the recommendation, with Steve Gardner, Jim Dokken, Rick Fagerlie, Doug Reese and Ron Christianson in favor, and Denis Anderson, Cindy Swenson and Bruce DeBlieck against.
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However, Heitke said he opposed the committee's action.
"Maybe we have an obligation to hangar owners, but also to the citizens of Willmar about spending city money. I think we've spent more than enough money already beyond what we we're required to spend,'' said Heitke.
If the council approved Graves' request, other hangar owners will also make requests, said Heitke. He quoted a letter from pilot Kevin Ortenblad who asked the city to pay for his apron. Ortenblad's issues were discussed by the Public Works/Safety Committee on Sept. 26.
City Administrator Michael Schmit said he told Ortenblad the city will not pay for his apron. Schmit said he didn't think the issues raised by Graves and Ortenblad were similar.
Heitke also said the city has established new hangar leases at the rate of 10 cents per square foot, which he said some people are calling very generous.
Heitke said Graves chose to build a large hangar at the old airport to accommodate his plane and four others, which he said obligated Graves to put aprons on both sides to allow planes to get in and out. Heitke said Graves is choosing to do the same thing at the new airport.
"It's time to close the checkbook. By responding to this now, we'll have other owners that want the city to pay for things. This will not be the last request. We can't add more obligations to the city taxpayers. That's enough.''
Schmit said the city selected the site for Graves' hangar at the old airport. Schmit said he was not aware of other situations where hangar owners were required to build aprons from the taxi lanes to their hangars. In other cases, hangars were placed along the taxi lanes, he said.
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Heitke asked Schmit to explain the city's obligations to assist with the transfer of hangars from the old airport to the new airport.
At first, Schmit said, he didn't think money would be available to assist with moving or building hangars, but the city later received a $250,000 state grant, matched with $250,000 in local bonding, to help pay the cost of moving 11 hangars from the old airport to the new airport. Relocated hangars will receive concrete floors to address building code requirements, he said.
"We tried to manage those funds to accommodate the relocation. There were no provisions for assisting with construction of new hangars,'' he said.
Schmit said mayoral vetoes are few and far between. He said the charter requires the city clerk to provide the minutes of the meeting to the mayor within three or four days. The mayor has seven days to decide on the veto, and is required to present his reasons for the veto in writing to the council. Six votes are required to override a veto.
