Leaders Report Progress in Airport Talks
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowGary/Chicago International Airport officials expect to announce terms of a public-private partnership within the coming weeks. Interim Director R.B. Lane says “significant progress” is being made between the airport and Chicago-based Aviation Facilities Company Inc. The two sides are negotiating final details of potential new development in the airport area. November 25, 2013
News Release
GARY, Ind. – The interim director of the Gary/Chicago International Airport said today that significant progress is being made in negotiations toward reaching an agreement between the airport's public-private partnership (P3) committee and Aviation Facilities Company Inc./AvPORTS (AFCO) to invest in the airport and the surrounding area, and the committee expects to present an agreement on terms to the airport authority for its consideration in the coming weeks.
“Significant progress is being made to reach an agreement that will deliver value to all of the airport's stakeholders,” said BR Lane, interim executive director of the Gary/Chicago International Airport. “Both sides in the negotiations continue to work diligently to produce an agreement that is mutually beneficial.”
The committee and AFCO are negotiating terms on management and development agreements. Any agreements on terms between the committee and AFCO are non-binding as the airport authority board has final review and approval over all agreements.
On October 25, the committee announced exclusive negotiations with Aviation Facilities Company Inc./AvPORTS. The team also includes Guggenheim Partners, a global financial services firm and Loop Capital, an investment bank.
Tasked by the Airport Authority in February to explore a P3 to accelerate job creation and long-term investment in Gary and the Northwest Indiana region, the Ad Hoc Committee is pursuing a P3 model that retains public ownership of the airport and benefits from private sector innovation and access to capital.
Ad Hoc committee members include:
-Carrie J. Hightman – Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee and Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer of NiSource Inc.
-Marion Johnson – Pastor Mt. Moriah Baptist Church
-Bo Kemp – Managing Director, J Gari and Associates, Advisor to Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson
-Harley Snyder – Chief Executive Officer, HSC, Inc., Board Member of the Regional Development Authority
-James Cooper – Board Member, Gary/Chicago International Airport Authority
-Shontrai Irving – Board Member, Gary/Chicago International Airport Authority
The Gary/Chicago International Airport is less than 30 minutes from the heart of the tri-state region – Chicago. The airport is directly connected to Chicago's transportation network through freight, interstate and mass-transit and has close proximity to multiple Lake Michigan ports.
Source: Gary/Chicago International Airport Authority