Airport Authority - January 9, 2018 Minutes

The Annual Meeting of the Municipal Airport Authority of the City of Fargo, North Dakota, was held Tuesday, January 9, 2018, at 8:00 a.m. in the Airport Boardroom.
The members present or absent were as follows:

Present: Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek
Absent: None
Others: Bossart
Chairman Blazek presiding.

Approved the Minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Municipal Airport Authority Held December 12, 2017:
The minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Municipal Airport Authority held December 12, 2017, were approved without objection.

Approved the Airport Vouchers Totaling $180,843.53:
Dr. Clark moved to approve the airport vouchers totaling $180,843.53.
Second by Mr. Kilander.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Approved the Individual Voucher to Mead & Hunt:
Dr. Clark moved to approve the individual voucher in the amount of $46,729.55 to Mead & Hunt for partial payment request (final) for engineering services in connection with the Airport Master Plan Update, Project AIP42.
Second by Gen. Haugen.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Approved the Individual Voucher to Mead & Hunt:
Dr. Clark moved to approve the individual voucher in the amount of $7,000.00 to Mead & Hunt for partial payment request for engineering services in connection with the air cargo expansion.
Second by Gen. Haugen.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Approved the Individual Voucher to Mead & Hunt:
Dr. Clark moved to approve the individual voucher in the amount of $26,144.61 to Mead & Hunt for partial payment request for engineering services in connection with the Taxiway A and A1 Reconstruction Project, AIP47.
Second by Gen. Haugen.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Approved the Individual Voucher to Mead & Hunt:
Dr. Clark moved to approve the individual voucher in the amount of $3,019.61 to Mead & Hunt for partial payment request for engineering services in connection with the Employee Parking Lot Reconstruction and Expansion Project.
Second by Gen. Haugen.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Approved the Individual Voucher to Mead & Hunt:
Dr. Clark moved to approve the individual voucher in the amount of $1,632.00 to Mead & Hunt for engineering services in connection with the PFC Application #8.
Second by Gen. Haugen.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Approved the Individual Voucher to Cougar Tree Care:
Dr. Clark moved to approve the individual voucher in the amount of $8,380.00 to Cougar Tree Care for partial payment request for shelterbelt renovation project (removal of chips).
Second by Gen. Haugen.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Approved the Individual Voucher to TL Stroh Architects
Dr. Clark moved to approve the individual voucher in the amount of $21,255.00 to TL Stroh Architects for Partial Payment Request #4 for architectural and engineering services in connection with the Elevated Walkway.
Second by Gen. Haugen.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Approved the Individual Voucher to Northern Improvement Company:
Dr. Clark moved to approve the individual voucher in the amount of $16,560.00 to Northern Improvement Company for partial payment Request #2 for construction of the Employee Parking Lot Reconstruction and Expansion Project.
Second by Gen. Haugen.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Approved the Individual Voucher to Flint Communications:
Dr. Clark moved to approve the individual voucher in the amount of $1,543.75 to Flint Communications for partial payment request for 2017 Airport Marketing Plan.
Second by Gen. Haugen.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Reviewed 2018 Marketing Plan Options with Flint Communications:
Ms. Tara Olson, Flint Communications, was recognized and introduced the other Flint representatives present today: Kris Bevill, Crystal Bosch and Jason Lotzer. Ms. Olson stated we are at the end of the three-year term of our current creative cycle and today they will present two options for the new three-year cycle. She stated we will also be discussing public relations and social media.

Mr. Lotzer was recognized and stated the last campaign emphasized the ease of flying out of Fargo, no hassles, saving time and money not having to drive to another airport. He stated those are the core themes and we don't want to abandon those but we want to take that to another level.

Two concepts were presented:
Concept #1 - "Where good times take off"
Concept #2 - "Find your reason to Fly Fargo"

After discussion of the two concepts, it was the consensus of the board to move forward with Concept #2 because of the flexibility and the ability to change the reasons to fly throughout the three year period.

Ms. Kris Bevill was recognized and reviewed an example of a proactive public relations piece Flint handled for the airport last year on the Mamava breastfeeding station installed in the terminal building last year. She stated this was not breaking news but there was a nice article in The Forum about the station in a Saturday edition. She presented a proposal for a Public Relations Strategy and Consulting Program. She stated this would consist of planning, including conducting an input session to further identify goals and upcoming triggers and ultimately public relations implementation, including media outreach/pitching; facilitating interviews. She stated this program would assist the airport in an overall integrated approach to control the flow of information to the public on airport events and issues.

Ms. Bevill stated if the board would like to move forward with this public relations program the first step would be to have a meeting between the airport and Flint and go through a number of scenarios and develop a template for moving forward. Ms. Bevill stated she saw a number of media interviews Mr. Dobberstein had over the holiday travel season and stated she appreciates how he is always on message, on point, and very consistent in all of the interviews. She stated Mr. Dobberstein is very skilled when it comes to the media but part of this program would be to assist with streamlining the process and help to take a proactive approach.

Ms. Linn stated she would place great importance on crisis messaging and developing proactive crisis communications plan, with all that is going on in the world today. Ms. Bevill stated a crisis communications plan is a different undertaking that public relations but they have discussed this and presented a planning worksheet for crisis communication. She stated there are often situations at the airport which are not under the control of the Airport Authority but rather an airline and crisis communication would help to convey that message to the public. She added that not every situation or crisis requires the same amount or type of communication.
Chairman Blazek stated he would be open to a lift in our public relations but asked if this is in our budget at this time.

Mr. Dobberstein stated we do have some funds for public relations in our operations and maintenance fund. Mr. Kilander stated with the recent aircraft incident, the news reporting he read gave the responsibility to the Fargo Fire Department for the aircraft rescue response rather that the airport fire department.

Ms. Bevill stated a lot of the time it is an ongoing educational process for the media and the public on the responsibilities of the various airport stakeholders. Mr. Kilander stated he feels we need to take an active hand in developing and move forward with at least some of what has been proposed today. Ms. Bevill stated public relations can be as little or as much as you want it to be. Ms. Linn stated the Airport Authority is fortunate to have such a good spokesperson in Mr. Dobberstein. Mr. Dobberstein stated that our Airport Emergency Plan covers a lot of this already so it is not something new to us. Chairman Blazek stated it seems to be the consensus of the board to move forward with the Flint public relations strategy and consultation program and the crisis communication plan. He stated since there are funds in the budget for this no action is necessary.

Ms. Crystal Bosch was recognized and reviewed the Social Media 2017 Summary and 2018 Goals. Ms. Olson presented the proposed media budget for 2018 including television, radio, print online media, as well as campaign creative, social community management, PR planning and implementation, website maintenance and travel association for a grand total of $274,614.00. Mr. Kilander moved to approve the 2018 Airport Marketing Plan as proposed by Flint Communications.
Second by Ms. Linn.

Ms. Olson clarified that the Crisis Planning is included in the amount for PR Planning and Implementation and may not reach the $25,000 shown in the line item. On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye. No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried
.
Authorized Attendance at 2018 Conferences:
Mr. Kilander moved to authorize attendance by board members and staff at the following conferences in 2018:
GLC-AAAE Winter Board Meeting, February 9-11, 2018, West Palm Beach, FL.
AAAE Legislative Conference, March 20-22, 2018, Washington, DC
AAAE National Airport Economic Development Conference, March 25-27, 2018, San Antonio, TX
AAAE Annual Conference, April 15-18, 2018, San Diego, CA
Second by Dr. Clark.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Received Communication from the Federal Aviation Administration Regarding Approval of PFC Application #8:
The communication from the Federal Aviation Administration dated January 2, 2018, was received and filed without objection. Mr. Dobberstein stated we have received notice from the Federal Aviation Administration advising that our PFC Application #8 has been approved. He stated this will extend our collection authority for 24-30 months. He stated that we have already started on the process for the next PFC application.

Received Request from ND Aviation Council Regarding Sponsorship of the Upper Midwest Aviation Symposium, March 4-6, 2018, in Fargo:
The communication from the ND Aviation Council dated December 2017 was received and filed without objection. Mr. Dobberstein stated the 2018 Upper Midwest Aviation Symposium will be held in Fargo, March 4-6, 2018. He stated the NDAC's tradition has been that the airport in the hosting city sponsor the symposium at the $5,000 level.
Mr. Kilander moved to approve the $5,000 sponsorship of the Upper Midwest Aviation Symposium, March 4-6, 2018 in Fargo.
Second by Ms. Linn.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen, Blazek voted aye.
No member being absent and none voting nay the motion was declared carried.

Received Proposal from Games Unlimited Regarding Revised Arcade Agreement:
Mr. Dobberstein stated Games Unlimited (Valley Video) is the current operator of the video games in the game room area on the first floor of the terminal. He stated their contract expired December 31, 2017 and they are proposing their standard two-year contract, different than the previous. Their previous contract called for them to pay 50% commission with a $4,000 annual minimum guarantee. He stated the game vending business has changed considerably in the last few years with people using their phones so it has not been at all profitable. He stated the new agreement states they will pay 40% of the net profit with no annual minimum, which will allow them to make something. He stated this is a two-year agreement with a 30 day out.

Dr. Clark moved to approve the two-year agreement with Games Unlimited for operation of the game room.
Second by Ms. Linn.
All members present voted aye and the motion was declared carried.

Reviewed Agreement with Gate City Bank Regarding Fargo Air Museum Transaction:
Attorney Stacey Bossart stated she received a request from Mr. Jim Sweeney, Fargo Air Museum Board Chair, to draft an attornment agreement regarding the Fargo Air Museum's financing of their restroom addition and Gate City Bank. She stated she received title information with requirements from, Tim Stokka, Gate City Bank. She stated Mr. Dobberstein reviewed the document and then she forwarded the draft agreement to Mr. Stokka but has not heard back.

Ms. Jackie Williams, Executive Director, Fargo Air Museum, was recognized and clarified that this is an unanticipated expansion project to meet City of Fargo requirements for restrooms, for which they had not budgeted, as it was unanticipated. Attorney Bossart stated there was some confusion as to who should be drafting the agreement and she stated it should be drafted by Gate City as it benefits the lender, but she received a request from Mr. Sweeney and asked if she could take care of it. She asked Ms. Williams to check with Gate City Bank and check on the status of the agreement.

Chairman Blazek stated his only concern is that any legal expense incurred for the drafting of this agreement not be paid by the Airport Authority but be passed on to the Fargo Air Museum.

Reviewed Agreement with Gate City Bank Regarding Fargo Air Museum Transaction:
because there is no reason the Airport Authority should be responsible for creating these documents. Ms. Williams indicated she would follow up with Mr. Sweeney as well.

Airport Construction and Security Update:
Mr. Terry Stroh, TL Stroh Architects, was recognized and stated they are working on scheduling the community meetings for the skyway project.
Mr. Darren Anderson was recognized and stated the checked baggage conveyor belt project requested by the TSA is being finalized and will probably begin in April.

NDANG Received Air Force Outstanding Unit Award:
Chairman Blazek asked Gen. Haugen to comment on the NDANG 119th Wing's recent Air Force Outstanding Unit Award. Gen. Haugen stated this is the 19th time the 119th has received this award. He explained that any unit that feels they deserve this award has to apply to the Air Force for the award. He stated only 10% of the units that apply will receive the award. He stated 19 awards to one unit is unprecedented. He stated the award received was for fiscal year 2016.

Recognized ARFF Chief David Bush on his Retirement from the NDANG:
Chairman Blazek stated on behalf of the Municipal Airport Authority he would like to congratulate ARFF Chief David Bush on his retirement from the NDANG after 31 years of service.

Elect Chairman of the Municipal Airport Authority for Calendar Year 2018, as per Bylaws:
Mr. Kilander moved to elect Dr. Virginia Clark Chairman of the Municipal Airport Authority for calendar year 2018, as per bylaws.
Second by Ms. Linn.
All members present voted aye and the motion was declared carried.
Dr. Clark abstained.

Elect Vice Chairman of the Municipal Airport Authority for Calendar Year 2018, as per Bylaws:
Dr. Clark moved to elect Gen. Mike Haugen Vice Chairman of the Municipal Airport Authority for calendar year 2018, as per bylaws.
Second by Mr. Kilander.
All members present voted aye and the motion was declared carried.
Gen. Haugen abstained.

Adopted Resolution of Appreciation to Outgoing Chairman, Steve Blazek:
Chairman Blazek thanked the other board members for their service this past year. He stated looking back at the last year it has been kind of a tumultuous year. He stated we have made some great strides on things we have talked about for years; we have welcomed new board members. He stated we did not get all of the things off the checklist we wanted to do this year and for that, Mr. Dobberstein, we apologize. He stated he thinks overall we are taking two steps forward even though sometimes we are set one step back. He thanked Mr. Dobberstein and the board members for all of their hard work this past year.

Mr. Kilander offered the following resolution of appreciation and moved its adoption:
WHEREAS, Mr. J. Stephen Blazek has just completed a year as Chairman of the Municipal Airport Authority, and
WHEREAS, Mr. Blazek has labored diligently and given unsparingly of his time and expertise in many areas serving as Chairman of the Municipal Airport Authority, and under his leadership the Airport Authority has continued in its efforts to find ways in which to improve the facilities and services available to passengers, and
WHEREAS, During the year of Mr. Blazek’s chairmanship the Municipal Airport Authority has continued in its efforts to move Hector International Airport steadily and successfully two steps forward and for his leadership during those times we were set one step back, and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Municipal Airport Authority does hereby commend Mr. Steve Blazek for his effective efforts on behalf of the Municipal Airport Authority and Hector International Airport.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this resolution be inscribed upon the permanent minutes of the Municipal Airport Authority and a certified copy of the herein resolution be forwarded to Mr. Blazek.

Second by Ms. Linn.
On the call of the roll, members Clark, Linn, Kilander, Haugen.
Blazek passed his vote.

The resolution was declared to have been duly passed and adopted.

The Annual Meeting of the Municipal Airport Authority was adjourned until the next regular meeting to be held Tuesday, January 23, 2018, at 8:00 am in the Airport Boardroom.

Time at adjournment was 9:20 a.m.