T0: Palo Alto Mayor and Council Members

Honorable Palo Alto Mayor and Council Members

The following eMail is forwarded from the California Pilots Association. I plan to address the Council Monday Night, representing our President.

I will also represent myself, from Menlo Park, with an airplane based at Palo Alto Airport (PAO). I expect to comment on the key role that PAO plays in serving various area businesses and surrounding communities. No title

PAO further provides a positive contribution to the local economy, far beyond the services and fees paid to (collected at) the airport itself. 
  • Airport employees and businesses pay taxes and buy commodities as a result of their aviation segment employment.
  • Travelers, using PAO as a gateway to the area for business and personal reasons, provide additional revenue.
  • Aircraft Owners & Businesses pay property taxes on their aircraft; these revenues are used by the County for non-aviation purposes.

    The California/CALTRANS Division of Aeronautics has a process to validate these factors; see <www.dot.ca.gov/hq/planning/aeronaut/htmlfile/econstudy2003.php>. An example of the economic model begins on page Page 29 of the "entire study". Please support signing the FAA Grant Assurance (documents) so that PAO can be provided with the ongoing infrastructure project funding that is required to support keeping this powerful economic engine functioning within our community. This is a win-win situation for the mid-Peninsula. Bill Sanders,
    Regional Vice President California Pilots Association

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