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Brookings Regional Airport Board
Brookings, SD 57006
April 17, 2012
The Brookings Airport Board was called to order by Acting Chairperson Jim
Bailey on Tuesday, April 17, 2012, at 4:30 PM in the Meeting Room located on the
first floor of City Hall. Members present were Judy McLaughlin, Orv Smidt, and
Bailey. Members absent were Jeff Boulware and Lynn Riedesel. Also present were
Randy Hanson - Pheasants Fury FBO, Wayne Kelm – SDSU, Bryan Miller - BEM, Donan
Estell, Jr. – Sandia, Jason Biddle – MIT Lincoln Laboratory, and Airport Manager Philip
Tiedeman.
Item #2 – (Smidt/McLaughlin) Motion to approve the minutes from the March 22,
2012, meeting. All present voted aye. MOTION CARRIED.
Item #3 – (McLaughlin/Smidt) Motion to approve the agenda. All present voted
aye. MOTION CARRIED.
Item #4 – The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, May 17, 2012.
Old Business
Item #5 – Environmental and Biological Assessment Update – Airport Manager Philip
Tiedeman reported that things are at a standstill now as the FONSI ROD is in its
publication in the Federal Register. Tiedeman said he is also waiting for the State to
complete the review land appraisals which, hopefully, will be next week.
Helms & Assoc. and Civil Design Inc. are in the final design phase of the creek
re-route. Smidt asked if it is a big concern for Brookings now that there is a standstill
with FAA and the State and if Brookings should push to get things moving.
Tiedeman said he and Jackie have been in contact with the FAA and the State,
and he is pressing to find that middle ground. He added that the FAA hasn’t started
issuing grants yet. The airport will have about 60 days from when they make that
announcement to make sure the project is moving forward.
Item #6 – Snow and Ice Control – Tiedeman said there was not much snow and ice
to be concerned about this past month. He added that this item will appear on the
May agenda; then it won’t be on the monthly agendas until next fall/winter. He
said if any board members have a concern about the process, please bring it to
the next meeting.
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Item #7 – BEM/Sandia Presentation – Bryan Miller, Donan Estell, Jr. and Jason Biddle
gave a slide presentation on their plans for the Brookings portion of their project,
which is how radar is affected by wind turbines and ways to counter or mitigate
those affects. There is a core team of six agencies involved. They are doing two
other similar projects. One is in California, and the other is in Texas. They will fly in
Brookings from April 23 – May 4 with 18 flying periods, flying twice a day for three to
four hours each. There are 2,200 wind towers and four radar systems involved in this
area. Bailey asked if SDSU was aware of the plans and if it would affect them. Miller
said SDSU was aware, and they are coordinating with them. NOTAMS will also be
issued, but there will not be many restrictions. Miller said SDSU is a valuable addition
for them, and they appreciate their involvement. Bailey asked if local pilots needed
to be aware of any concerns. Miller said the FAA has said the NOTAMS will be
sufficient. Miller said their radio frequency may be able to be posted and
monitored, but that is up to the FAA. Estell said they will be doing a test run on April
19. The basic result will be getting ground truth data. Miller said their goal is to allow
a way for wind farms to continue to develop, and yet find out how they affect the
radar systems so the systems can be modified. Biddle said the study is paid for by
the companies involved and not the government. Hanson asked if there could be
a press release so the citizens of Brookings could know about the project at the
airport. Miller said that would need to come through the FAA also. He was not able
to release any specific information to the press. McLaughlin asked if Brookings
would get any follow-up information after the study is completed. Miller said,
eventually, but it would need to go through the process.
New Business – none
Item #8 – Airport Manager’s Report – Tiedeman said Brookings will get a GCO in mid
May after this project is complete. He would have like to have had it for the pilots
during the program, but that will not happen.
Tiedeman said traffic counts are up at the airport for 2012. The first quarter is 20
aircraft over the numbers for the same time last year. He added that Brookings was
estimated to be the 3rd busiest airport in South Dakota after Sioux Falls and Rapid
City. BKX had between 33,000 and 34,000 operations in 2012.
Tiedeman said he has drafted a letter to the South Dakota Aeronautics Commission
offering to have the 2013 Annual Airports Conference in Brookings. He is hoping to
have some additional information soon.
Item #9 – FBO Report – Randy Hanson, Pheasant’s Fury, said he is very happy to
have the wind turbine project happening at the airport. He added that there are
two other special operations presently going on at the airport. SRC is using some
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local pilots and doing some testing that is preparatory to the main test. Raytheon is
also doing some advanced work.
Hanson said the SDSU Fly-In took place on April 14th. The attendance numbers were
down from last year. He felt more advertising was needed along with more long
range planning. He felt that combining the fly-in with another event would be
advantageous.
Other Items - none
The meeting was adjourned.
___________________________ ________________________________
Diane M. Spencer, Secretary James Bailey, Acting Chairperson