Briscoe Advisory Committee Meets for First Time

The Airport Privatization Citizens Review Committee held their first meeting Tuesday afternoon.

Tuesday afternoon as the Airport Privatization Citizens Review Committee held its first ever meeting at Briscoe Field.  In a crowded conference room three rows of chairs squeezed in the small room were not enough for all the public who came out to sit in on the meeting. Extra chairs were brought in, and even still, some attendees had to sit just outside the door. The meeting was held so the 11 committee members could set up leadership and meeting rules. The committee is expected to have a report on the airport ready by the Feb. 15, 2012 deadline. Eric "Tip" Cate of Suwanee was unanimously elected chairman of the committee, and Gary Custar of Snellville was chosen vice-chairman. The committee will evaluate and decide what the best uses of …

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New Briscoe Field Committee to Hold First Meeting

The proposed agenda for the newly formed Airport Privatization Citizens Review Committee has been released.

The Airport Privatization Citizens Review Committee will hold their first meeting today, Tues., Nov. 8, at 4 p.m. at the Briscoe Field offices. The 11 members and Infrastructure Management Group (IMG) will provide counseling in the proposals for the potential privatization of Briscoe Field.  Here is the proposed agenda for Tuesday's meeting: Airport Privatization Citizens Review Committee Proposed Agenda November 8, 2011 I. Introduction and Welcome II. Overview      A. Committee Role/Goals III. Organizational Issues      A. Structure of Committee and Election of Officers (Chair & Vice Chair)      B. Meeting Structure – agenda, participation, discussion, decision making and public comment      C. Record of discussion and decisions of …

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Gwinnett OKs New Airport Process; Citizens Panel Formed

Commissioners unanimous in moving forward with examining plans for privatizing Briscoe Field.

Showing the political unity that has been advised, Gwinnett's Board of Commissioners unanimously approved plans Tuesday for a citizens review panel and for moving forward with proposals regarding the potential privatization of county-owned Briscoe Field. Meeting in Lawrenceville, the commissioners named eight people to the Citizens Review Committee (there will be 11 total) and empowered Infrastructure Management Group (IMG) to provide counseling in the proposal process. The board also scrapped previous qualifications submitted. "The process has been restarted," Commission Chairman Charlotte Nash said after the meeting. "This Board Of Commissioners has made that decision." The next step will be for the county to issue Request for Proposals…

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Briscoe Field Controversy Continues

County set to reject all proposals received in response to previous request for qualifications related to operation of the airport.

The county’s plan to privatize Briscoe Field may soon be slightly less controversial if county leaders follow consultant and staff recommendations and reject all responses received in answer to the county’s request for qualifications (RFQ) from companies interested in privatizing the Lawrenceville airport. The move follows a report from airport consultants Infrastructure Management Group (IMG) that included a recommendation to separate the commercial service and privatization debate.  County leaders met with IMG on Sept. 20 to discuss the report findings. During the meeting, IMG advised the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners to present a united front. "If the county doesn't have its act together politically, bidders are not likely to …

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Briscoe Field Privatization on Today's BOC Agenda

Commissioners to hold Q&A on Tuesday with airport consultant.

Gwinnett commissioners are expected to meet with an airport consultant Tuesday, Sept. 20, for a briefing that will follow their regular work session. The question and answer session will begin at 10:30 a.m. in the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners conference room, 75 Langley Drive in Lawrenceville. The meeting is open to the public. The meeting with IMG, chosen because of its expertise in airport operations, comes after more than a year of discord on the issue of privatization. Commissioner Lynette Howard, who voted to move forward and called for the meeting, said she still has questions about the feasibility of the proposals. "I want to find out more about the facts behind it so I can make a good decision. We need to have a credible …

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Airport Privatization Opponents Fail to Sway Woodall

Rep. Woodall said he believes private sector deserves a chance.

Members of Citizens for a Better Gwinnett and Gwinnett Citizens for a Responsible Government turned out in force for Rep. Rob Woodall’s (R-GA-07) appearance at Thursday night’s Founding Fathers Tea Party Patriots meeting. The groups are looking to Woodall for support in their fight against the potential privatization and commercialization of Briscoe Field. Gwinnett Citizens for a Responsible Government chairwoman Sabrina Smith said the expense the county would incur should any private operator fail is an expense the taxpayers cannot afford and asked Woodall for his position on the privatization program. “Like any pilot program … we don’t know if it is a good program or not. We don’t know what the success rate will be,” Woodall said. “My …

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An Update From Your County Commissioner

Still Confused About the Issues of Privatizing Briscoe Field?

Here are the facts which should help dispel any confusion on just what the issues are that are causing so much discussion.

Editor's note: Dist. 2 Board of Commissioner Lynette Howard provides important details to help understand the current issue of privatizing Gwinnett's Briscoe Field. Learn what is fact and what is fiction about this current hot-button issue that has divided both politicians and citizens in our county. I want to give people a few of the facts. 1. Briscoe Airport belongs to Gwinnett County and is not up for sale. 2. Any fees collected from the operation of airport must be use exclusively for the airport under current law. 3. Privatization would potentially allow the county to collect fees from the airport. 4. Briscoe has a runway that is 6,000 feet long. There may be safety reasons for extending the runway 500 feet. This is an addition of 8 …

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BJ Van Gundy

9:07 am on Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Jim and Rick. I know that this is trite.... but everytime you use the word "if" I think of the old "if frogs had wings they wouldn't bump themselves in the butt when they jumped". Once again. No proposal has been formally received. Mr. Smith has not said anything along the lines that he was going to go out and borrow money with the County as a co-signer.... so quit coming up with "ifs" that are …   more ›