COUNTY OF SAN MATEO

Inter-Departmental Correspondence

Department of Public Works

DATE:

March 18, 2002

BOARD MEETING DATE:

April 2, 2002

TO:

Honorable Board of Supervisors

FROM:

Neil R. Cullen, Director of Public Works

SUBJECT:

Hangar Waiting List Policies and Procedures for San Carlos and Half Moon Bay Airports

Recommendation

Adopt a resolution:

1.

adopting the proposed "San Mateo County Airports Hangar/Tiedown Waiting List Policies and Procedures" (Policies);

2.

authorizing the Director of Public Works to implement said policies and procedures beginning April 15, 2002; and

3.

setting April 15, 2002, through May 29, 2002 as the 45-day period for persons to apply for Tier 1, 2, 3 and 4 status on the San Carlos Hangar Waiting Lists as described in the Policies.

Previous Board Action

Directed staff to develop procedures to be used in administering the San Carlos Airport Hangar Waiting Lists.

Key Facts

The proposed Policies were developed with input from hangar and tiedown tenants, pilots groups and current waiting list applicants.

Background

Hangar and Tiedown waiting lists were established to ensure the fair and orderly assignment of aircraft hangars and tiedowns. The existing hangar waiting lists at San Carlos Airport were closed in 1988 because the number of people on the lists became unmanageable and the wait for a hangar was approximately 25 years. The hangar waiting lists at Half Moon Bay were not closed and remain open for new applicants and currently there are no waiting lists for tiedowns at either airport.

Hangar and Tiedown Waiting List Policies

We developed the proposed policies that include general provisions for both hangar and tiedown waiting lists when and if such lists are necessary and specific provisions for the San Carlos Hangars Waiting Lists:

General Provisions

The large hangar waiting lists have been combined for simplicity and efficiency and aircraft size requirements are defined for said lists.

All applicants will be required to pay a non-refundable fee, be 18 years or older and possess a pilot's license or student pilot's certificate in order to add their name or remain on a waiting list.

Individuals will be limited to renting a maximum of four spaces at each airport with not more that two spaces at each airport being hangars. An individual's name may not appear more than twice on the combined hangar waiting lists for each airport.

The new waiting lists will be updated every two years and all applicants will be required to confirm their contact and required information. Applicants who do not respond or provide the required information will be removed from the list and have their fee forfeited.

Opening of the San Carlos Waiting Lists

The following 5-Tier priority system was developed to initially reestablish the hangar waiting lists in order to address the concerns raised by tenants, pilots and others when this proposal was being discussed with the various stake holders. The tier number indicates the relative priority of the tier - i.e., Tier 1 is higher than Tier 2, Tier 2 is higher than Tier 3, etc.

The tiers are comprised as follows:

Tier 1 -

Persons that are currently on the existing waiting lists.

Tier 2 -

Registered owners of an Aircraft that as of February 1, 2002, have an aircraft on a tiedown at San Carlos Airport or a tiedown or hangar at Half Moon Bay.

Tier 3 -

One registered co-owner as of February 1, 2002, of an aircraft that is currently hangared at San Carlos Airport where the co-owner is not the existing hangar permittees. These owners would not qualify for a separate hangar but would be able to have their names added to the existing hangar permit with the approval of the current hangar tenant. The current tenant could not revoke their approval once given.

Tier 4 -

All other qualifying applicants that submit their applications within the initial 45-day application period.

Tier 5 -

All other qualifying applicants who apply after the initial 45-day application period.

Notification of the Opening of the Waiting Lists

Persons on the current waiting list will be noticed via first class mail of the 45-day opening of the hangar waiting lists. The Policies provide that failure of the applicant to receive this notification shall not be considered justification for reinstatement.

All other applicants will be notified by including a notice in the monthly tiedown and hangar bills and posting at both airports. The pilots association has also agreed to post it on their web site.

Placement on the Lists

Tier 1 applicants that qualify will retain their relative location on the waiting lists. The priority of Tier 2, 3 and 4 applicants that qualify will be established by random lottery selection at the end of the initial 45-day application period. Tier 5 applicants will be based on the date the application is accepted after the initial 45-day application period.

Tier 1 through 4 will only be used to establish the initial hangar waiting lists with all other subsequent applications including those of existing tenants, co-owners and others being considered as Tier 5 after the initial 45-day application period.

Vision Alignment

We believe our recommendation is consistent with the Shared Vision Commitment to provide a "Responsive, Effective and Collaborative Government," as the proposed policies establish a fair method of allowing persons to compete for the relatively limited hangar space available at the County owned airports.

Fiscal Impact

The proposed fees for the hangar and tiedown waiting lists are as follows and includes a one-time administrative fee of $100 to defray the costs of maintaining the lists, with the remainder of the fee being applied to the applicant's account at the time he or she is assigned a space.

San Carlos Hangar Waiting Lists:

$500

Half Moon Bay Hangar Waiting Lists:

$300

Tiedown Waiting Lists:

$200

The entire fee is non-refundable and the applicant's entire fee will be forfeited should an applicant be removed or withdraw from the list or fail to qualify for a hangar.

The amount of funds collected in the form of hangar waiting list fees will depend on the number of applicants wishing to signup or remain on the waiting lists.

There is no impact to the General Fund and a form of resolution has been approved by County Counsel.

Attachments

Attached is a copy of the Policies together with the summary of the comments received when the draft Policies were distributed to the various stake holders.

Other Issues

We will return with additional recommendations on updating and revising the conditions in the hangar rental agreements after reviewing proposed changes with the pilots' associations as we continue to receive complaints that the current rental agreement procedures allow hangars to be sublet, and this practice lengthens the time before a hangar is available to someone on the hangar waiting list.

We will also bring recommendations to your Board to codify the waiting list policies and procedures at the same time that we bring recommended changes to the hangar and tiedown rental agreements to your Board.