Grant-Valkaria Town Council May Vote June 11

For the second time this year, the Grant-Valkaria Town Council is attempting to restrict aviation activities at Grant-Valkaria airport, including the end of all flight instruction. The move comes despite the fact that they apparently have no jurisdiction to make such a move.

The ordinance (2009-03) to be considered Monday states in the bill summary: " ... PROVIDING FOR LIMITATIONS ON ACTIVITIES CONDUCTED AT AIRPORTS LOCATED IN THE GML (Government Managed Land) ZONING DISTRICT; PROHIBITING FLIGHT TRAINING/INSTRUCTION SCHOOLS ..." The text of the bill prohibits specific flight instruction activities. For instance the bill states no flight training/instruction or flight training/instruction schools shall be allowed to be operated from or in the GML zoning district, and aircraft based at any airport located in the GML zoning district shall be used for flight training. The bill defines flight training/instruction to mean the giving or receiving of instruction in learning to pilot an aircraft or for recurrent training, and flight training/instruction school shall mean any person firm, corporation or other entity that provides flight training/instruction.

Without getting too far down in the procedural weeds, and we've probably already gone there, the Airport Master Plan approved in 2006 describes the field like this. "Valkaria Airport (FAA airport identifier X59) is a non-towered, un-lighted, public-use, basic utility general aviation airport principally serving Brevard County, Florida. It is an undeveloped war surplus airfield primarily used for recreational flying, and for landing practice by nearby pilot training schools. The airport is located in a natural and environmentally sensitive setting, and is largely surrounded by low density rural residential areas; to include the communities of Grant-Valkaria, Malabar, and Palm Bay. The airport is solely-owned and operated by Brevard County under terms of a 1958 quit claim deed from the US Government and is zoned Government Managed Lands (GML)."

The county, it would seem, is the owner and operator of the airport. Not the town.

Earlier this year, the town council attempted to pass a law with restrictions on the field. A February report in the TCPalm online edition said the town wanted to prohibit touch-and-goes and stop-and-goes, as well as airport lighting. That ordinance would have also granted the town the right to simply "temporarily close the airport and restrict or prohibit flight activities."

At the time, the FAA said the Grant-Valkaria town council had no right to enforce such an ordinance. "Although the town of Grant-Valkaria is within their right to pass local ordinances, they are not within their right to enforce the ordinances at the airport," FAA program manager Pedro Blanco wrote in a memo to airport manager Steve Borowski.

"The town of Grant-Valkaria has no authority to regulate air traffic."

FMI: www.grantvalkaria.org