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Aug 06, 2023

Wood Co. Airport Authority discusses bid limit, equipment issues

Aug 4, 2023 The Mid-Ohio Valley Regional Airport’s primary firefighting vehicle is seen Tuesday. Airport management is looking into having a system added to the vehicle to allow the composition of its

Aug 4, 2023

The Mid-Ohio Valley Regional Airport’s primary firefighting vehicle is seen Tuesday. Airport management is looking into having a system added to the vehicle to allow the composition of its firefighting foam to be tested, as required annually, without the foam being discharged.(Photo by Evan Bevins)

WILLIAMSTOWN — The Wood County Airport Authority discussed raising its minimum bid threshold, an improvement to one of its firefighting vehicles and disposing of a large piece of equipment during its regular meeting Tuesday.

The authority voted 5-0, with member Andy Daniels participating by phone, to raise the amount requiring formal bids from $10,000 to $15,000, pending confirmation with Wood County Prosecutor Pat Lefebure. While state law allows it to go up to $25,000, the county’s bid threshold is $15,000, Mid-Ohio Valley Regional Airport Manager Ben Auville said.

“I think we need to parallel the county’s policy,” authority member Terry Moore said.

Airport officials would still seek multiple quotes for a product or service but would not have to go through the formal process of advertising bids if the price did not exceed $15,000, Moore said.

Auville said there are a couple of potential expenditures that would fit that criteria now, including multiple brush removal projects, at least one of which would exceed $10,000.

An expense that definitely won’t fall under that limit is modifying the airport’s firefighting apparatus to allow the concentration of the foam to be tested without actually spraying it. Auville said adding that system costs $60,000 but he believes it would be worth it, in part because the foam used contains carcinogenic material.

“We wouldn’t be exposing our employees to (a) carcinogen,” he said. “We wouldn’t be wasting foam.”

Authority members agreed that Auville should move forward and gather more information on the upgrade and potential federal funding to assist with it.

“In the long run, that would be a good investment,” member Tim Flinn said.

Auville told authority members he was looking to free up storage space by moving the airport’s massive Walter snow fighter, which had been used to clear snow off of runways. Other equipment has since taken its place.

Auville said he would like to see if there is a museum to which the airport could send the machine on permanent loan.

“The Walter snow fighter is a piece of heritage,” he said. “It’s something that’s been here close to 50 years.”

If that isn’t a possibility, Auville said he would explore selling it outright.

Assistant Manager Sidnie Beall said a fly-in is being planned for Oct. 28, which corresponds with one of the airport runways’ directional headings, 10-28. The event would be open to pilots who would have breakfast at the airport.

“It’s just something small, but it brings in a sense of community,” she said.

Enplanements for July weren’t available at Tuesday’s meeting since the month ended on Monday. Authority President Bill Richardson said Contour Airlines had not been completing flights “as regularly as we would like.”

Auville said there had been some mechanical issues earlier this summer that had since been addressed and there were times when required crew rest periods resulted in delays. Requested on-time completion rates had not been received as of Tuesday afternoon.

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