Lock Haven considering possible Piper Memorial Airport sale
LOCK HAVEN, PA – The City of Lock Haven has owned the William T. Piper Memorial Airport since Piper Aircraft relocated to Lock Haven in 1937. But Piper left the city in 1984 and now city government is considering the sale of the airport.
The Record has obtained letters recently sent to the handful of city employees at the airport and to tenants there, informing them regards the airport’s future. The Record also contacted City Manager Greg Wilson on the sale possibility, and he provided a financial statement which shows the airport operating at better than a $1.9 million deficit over the last ten years.
The city manager authored the letters to the employees and the tenants. In his letter to employees, Wilson wrote that city council directed him on July 24 “to get an appraisal done so that it would know the fair market value” of the airport and its assets. He said the appraisal would be the first step for council to decide the airport’s future.
The same letter said, “the city may (with may in italics) be interested soon in selling the airport for aviation use.” He said the information to employees and tenants “will make sure that anyone local with an interest in buying the airport has enough time in advance to consider that possibility.”
Since the original 70-acre city purchase in 1937, the city has added another 40 acres to the site. Since Piper’s 1984 departure, Wilson wrote, “the airport has been a difficult investment for the city to make pay for itself.” He said the money the city takes in for rent and fuel sales doesn’t come close to covering operating expenses. He noted that only five city residents are tenants at the airport.
The city manager declined to speculate on how long the appraisal and possible sale process might take.
There had been no public pre-warning that the city might move to sell off the airport. Mike Flanagan, President/CEO of the Clinton County Economic Partnership, declined immediate comment. A local realtor told The Record on Monday that there had been inquiries about the possibility of locating a warehouse on the airport grounds.
