07/19/2018- Outstanding signed lease agreements continue to trickle in from tenants at the Menominee Regional Airport, but there are several issues standing in the way of the local Civil Air Patrol submitting theirs. The county’s Airport Committee met Tuesday to discuss the need for an updated lease for the organization. County Administrator Jason Carviou says, for starters, the old lease had a 50-year term, which violates the county’s grant assurance protocol. More importantly, he adds, the organization hasn’t actually housed an aircraft in the hangar for several years, breaking the terms of the existing lease.
Carviou says he reached out to the commander of the Wisconsin Wing of the Civil Air Patrol, which covers Menominee’s unit. While the Air Force has cut back on the number of aircraft available for individual CAP units, the Wisconsin Wing is interested in retaining the hangar in Menominee in case one of their aircraft should need to be relocated to the area. However, Carviou says per FAA ruling, unless there is a plane in the hangar or the organization provides in-kind services to the airport, the CAP cannot continue to pay a reduced rental rate.
Airport committee members requested documentation on the activity of the local Civil Air Patrol. They also plan to meet with the organization to discuss the needs of both parties and attempt to establish a new lease agreement.