Regional Support Growing for New Airline Service at EKX
70 Groups Support New Airline Service at Elizabethtown Regional Airport
Through the Partnership for Central Kentucky Airline Service
Elizabethtown, Kentucky(July 16, 2007) – The Elizabethtown Airport Board today announced the development of substantial support for new commercial airline service at the Elizabethtown Regional Airport (EKX). During the past several months, the Airport Board’s consultant, Luke Schmidt, has met with numerous government jurisdictions, chamber boards and industrial development boards throughout the 24 county Elizabethtown Regional Air Service Market. During these meetings and presentations, Schmidt has presented the project as a means by which to further connect the entire region to the global economy. In addition, groups throughout the region have recognized the value that new airline service will bring in terms of providing an additional selling point for prospective new businesses and industry, thereby helping to create thousands of new jobs in the future. As of today, 70 organizations have formally considered and passed resolutions of support for the development of new airline service at EKX. In addition, over 100 letters of support have been received from elected officials, business and industry leaders and individuals. Joe Yates, Chairman of the Elizabethtown Airport Board stated, “The Board is pleased with the overwhelming support that it has received from all of these organizations. This support clearly indicates that the region is ready to embrace new airline service.” Luke Schmidt stated that outreach efforts have also extended to Fort Knox. “With all of the changes that are coming to the Post as a result of BRAC, the leadership at Fort Knox has clearly recognized the benefits of having convenient and cost effective air travel only 15 minutes away and is very supportive of our efforts. This effort has truly become a regional project in every sense of the word.” Following is a list of the organizations which have passed formal resolutions of support:- Adair County Fiscal Court
- Albany City Council
- Albany/Clinton County Chamber of Commerce
- Bardstown City Council
- Barren County Fiscal Court
- Beaver Dam City Commission
- Breckinridge County Chamber of Commerce
- Breckinridge County Emergency Medical Service
- Breckinridge County Fiscal Court
- Breckinridge County United
- Butler County Fiscal Court
- Campbellsville City Council
- Campbellsville – Taylor County Industrial Development Authority
- Caneyville City Council
- Central City City Council
- Clinton County Fiscal Court
- Cloverport City Council
- Columbia/Adair County Chamber of Commerce
- Columbia/Adair County Industrial Foundation
- Columbia/Adair County Tourism Commission
- Columbia City Council
- Edmonton City Council
- Edmonton/Metcalfe County Industrial Foundation
- Elizabethtown City Council
- Elizabethtown/Hardin County Chamber of Commerce
- Elizabethtown/Hardin County Industrial Foundation
- Elizabethtown Independent School District
- Elizabethtown Tourism & Convention Bureau
- Glasgow/Barren County Industrial Development Economic Authority
- Glasgow City Council
- Grayson County Chamber of Commerce
- Grayson County Fiscal Court
- Grayson County Tourism Commission
- Greater Muhlenberg County Chamber of Commerce
- Greenville City Council
- Hancock County Fiscal Court
- Hardin County Board of Education
- Hardin County Fiscal Court
- Hart County Chamber of Commerce
- Hart County Fiscal Court
- Hart County Industrial Authority
- Hartford City Council
- Hodgenville City Council
- Hodgenville/Larue County Industrial Foundation
- Irvington Heritage/Main Street Council
- Larue County Chamber of Commerce
- Larue County Fiscal Court
- Larue County School District
- Leitchfield City Council
- Leitchfield/Grayson County Industrial Development Corporation
- Lincoln Trail Area Development District
- Marion County Fiscal Court
- Meade County Area Chamber of Commerce
- Meade County Fiscal Court
- Metcalfe County Fiscal Court
- Monroe County Fiscal Court
- Morgantown/Butler County Chamber of Commerce
- Morgantown City Council
- Muhlenberg County Fiscal Court
- Nelson County Economic Development Agency
- North Hardin Economic Development Authority
- Ohio County Chamber of Commerce
- Ohio County Fiscal Court
- One Knox
- Radcliff City Council
- Radcliff – Hardin County Chamber of Commerce
- Russell County Chamber of Commerce
- Russell County Fiscal Court
- Taylor County Fiscal Court
- Tompkinsville/Monroe County Chamber of Commerce
March 18th, 2007 Hot Button Guest Editorial: Luke B. Schmidt, Food With Wine Coalition — Text Version
What would you think if I told you that I know a way that the Kentucky General Assembly can find $59 million in new tax revenue without raising taxes, help Kentucky’s grape growers and wineries grow their businesses, and create new locations where consumers can purchase wine and create more competition in the marketplace?
Article originally posted by the WAVE-TV Web site directed to: http://www.wave3.com/story/8036306/march-18th-2007-hot-button-guest-editorial-luke-b-schmidt-food-with-wine-coalition-text-version?ClientType=Printable&redirected=true
March 18th, 2007 Hot Button Guest Editorial: Luke B. Schmidt, Food With Wine Coalition — Text Version
March 18th, 2008
What would you think if I told you that I know a way that the Kentucky General Assembly can find $59 million in new tax revenue without raising taxes, help Kentucky’s grape growers and wineries grow their businesses, and create new locations where consumers can purchase wine and create more competition in the marketplace?
Allowing grocery stores to sell wine by passing House Bill 585 will create $59 million in new tax revenue through increased wine sales and will create new, convenient and safe places for consumers to buy wine to pair with their food purchase.
Our vineyards and wineries are growing fast. According to staff at the University of Kentucky, by 2010 the state’s 53 growing wineries are expected to produce 630,000 gallons of wine. Our farm families need help in moving this product to market. Allowing grocery stores to sell wine will provide the only meaningful opportunity for our vineyards and wineries to grow their businesses and to eliminate the near-monopoly enjoyed by liquor stores today.
Kentucky’s grocery store industry believes its customers should have a choice when it comes to matching their personal tastes in food with corresponding wine selections.
If you agree with us that now is the time to allow Kentucky to join the 34 other states that allow grocery stores to sell wine, including six of our seven border states, contact your legislator in Frankfort by calling 1-800-372-7181
Tell them that you support House Bill 585 and to vote YES on this important measure.
L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC (LBS&A) has completed an assignment for a national professional certification society with 88,000+ certified members.
L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC (LBS&A) has completed an assignment for a Washington, D.C.-based national professional certification society with 88,000+ certified members. LBS&A was asked to develop an extensive presentation on organizational governance for the client’s Board of Directors.
The assignment included a complete review of the society’s existing governmental structure including By-Laws, election of Board members, etc. The assignment also included extensive discussions with the society’s leadership team.
The presentation covered all aspects of organizational administration, including By-Laws, election of Board members and officers, reporting processes, organizational transparency, etc. The presentation was given to the Board of Directors during its meeting in Sarasota, Florida in February 2007.
Elizabethtown, Kentucky (February 12, 2007) – The Elizabethtown Airport Board today announced that it has changed the name of the city’s airport from Addington Field to Addington Field Elizabethtown Regional Airport.
For Immediate Release
Elizabethtown Airport Board Changes Airport Name to
Addington Field Elizabethtown Regional Airport
New Name Recognizes Airport’s New Mission and Regional Status and Will Be Further Promoted by its Three Letter Identification Code: EKX
Elizabethtown, Kentucky (February 12, 2007) – The Elizabethtown Airport Board today announced that it has changed the name of the city’s airport from Addington Field to Addington FieldElizabethtown Regional Airport.
In announcing the change, Elizabethtown Airport Board Chairman Joe Yates stated that the airport’s mission is changing and that the Board recognizes that not only does the airport serve the City of Elizabethtown, but it is expected to also serve Ft. Knox and a large part of Central Kentucky on an increasing basis going forward.
Yates stated, “Elizabethtown has become one of Kentucky’s major regional centers when it comes to education, employment, health care and shopping. We believe that the airport with its expanding mission will bring even more people to Elizabethtown down the road.”
The Elizabethtown Airport Board previously announced its intent to restore commercial airline service at the city’s airport. Yates stated that based on the market feasibility report recently issued by its consultant, Luke Schmidt, of L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC, the airport needs to begin branding itself as the regional airport of Elizabethtown, Ft. Knox and Central Kentucky as it goes about recruiting one or more airlines initially, and ultimately passengers, should the project attract commercial service. The new name reflects the airport’s new mission of serving theCentral Kentucky region. The airport will also be referred to by its three letter identification code, EKX, in order to promote the airport throughout the region.
Yates, again citing the market feasibility study, stated that other regional airports have successfully branded their facilities by promoting their airports by using the three letter code. Yates cited as an example the Golden Triangle Regional Airport which is located in Columbus, Mississippi. The airport’s code, GTR, is used to promote the airport throughout its market service area in east central Mississippi. This particular airport serves the cities of Columbus, Starkville and West Point, along with Columbus Air Force Base.
“GTR serves as a model as to how a regional area can promote its airport by using its three letter identification code,” Yates said. “Travelers throughout east central Mississippi increasingly refer to the airport as GTR Airport and they feel as though the airport is ‘their’ airport, even though it is located specifically in Columbus.”
Larger airports such as Baltimore/Washington International and Dallas/Ft. Worth International are known throughout their respective regions as “BWI Airport” and “DFW Airport.”
The Airport Board has adopted a new logo (which is shown at the top of this release), incorporating both the airport’s new name and the EKX code. The Board and L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC are developing additional collateral material to support the project. A new print brochure has just been developed and is being distributed to economic development and elected officials throughout the region. A new Web site to use in conjunction with the airline recruitment project will go online soon.
(Note: members of the media may obtain an electronic version of the new logo by contacting Luke Schmidt by calling 502.292.2898, or via E-Mail, lbschmidt@lbschmidt.com)
At the same time, Yates stated that the Elizabethtown Airport Board did not want to lose sight of the airport’s historical name: Addington Field. As such, the airport’s new, formal name will be:Addington Field Elizabethtown Regional Airport. Yates commented, “We appreciate the understanding of the Addington family of the need to change the name in order to better promote the airport, and their willingness to work with the Board as we move the facility to the next level.”
The Elizabethtown Airport Board is a not for profit organization which operates the municipal airport in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. Addington Field Elizabethtown Regional Airport began operations in 1982 as a general aviation airport and is currently engaged in efforts to restore commercial airline service to the field. The airport is promoted by use of its three letter identification code: EKX. EKX includes a 6,000 foot long runway which is “regional jet ready” with complete general aviation services. An Instrument Landing System (ILS) is currently being installed which will further enhance safety and increase the airport’s all-weather operational capacity. EKX plans to build a passenger terminal should commercial airline service be restored.
The Elizabethtown Airport Board has launched a project to restore commercial airline service to the city’s Addington Field municipal airport. The board has hired a consultant, who’s in the midst of compiling statistics and support from regional leaders to pitch to commercial service providers in the future, according to airport manager Roger Lawson.
Article originally posted by The (Bowling Green) Daily News directed to:http://bgdailynews.com/articles/2007/02/11/local_news/news/news4.txt
E-Town eyeing commercial air service
Meant to spur economic development, move may not have much effect here
By DOUG WATERS, The Daily News, dwaters@bgdailynews.com
Saturday, February 10, 2007 11:53 PM CST
The Elizabethtown Airport Board has launched a project to restore commercial airline service to the city’s Addington Field municipal airport.
The board has hired a consultant, who’s in the midst of compiling statistics and support from regional leaders to pitch to commercial service providers in the future, according to airport manager Roger Lawson.
The venture might not profit the airport much, but it would enhance Elizabethtown’s economic development prospects, Lawson said, as community and industry leaders have coveted restored service since a brief stint in the mid-1980s. Lawson declined to speculate on a timeframe or the likelihood of the project’s success.
Rob Barnett, airport manager of the Bowling Green-Warren County Regional Airport, said he’s aware of Elizabethtown’s restoration efforts, although he hasn’t discussed it in detail with Lawson. But he doesn’t think it would negatively impact Bowling Green’s bid to obtain similar service, an ongoing effort for many years.
“Elizabethtown is a considerable distance north of Bowling Green,” Barnett said. “I firmly feel if our airport was to secure a regional passenger jet carrier or commercial jet carrier, our community alone would support something of that nature.”
Bowling Green’s strengths: a vibrant, growing community and a doubling of its airport operations in the last 15 years, he said. However, commuter-passenger providers have overlooked it in the past due to its close proximity to Nashville.
“It’s very difficult in today’s airline industry to convince companies to expand their services and compete with the larger airlines that are in the market,” Barnett said.
Luke Schmidt, Elizabethtown’s project consultant, agreed that commercial jet service in Elizabethtown wouldn’t negatively impact Bowling Green’s bid.
However, Elizabethtown might be better positioned to attract commercial service, he said, because of its closeness to Fort Knox, which is slated to add 8,000 new employees by 2012, according to the U.S. Department of Defense.
Elizabethtown’s renewed bid is also more viable than 20 years ago, he added, when Delta Airlines and now-defunct Piedmont Airlines cut nearly a dozen combined daily departures because the airport didn’t attract enough passengers to justify service.
“It was probably too much service too soon,” said Schmidt, an Elizabethtown native now based in Louisville.
Since then, Elizabethtown has grown substantially and the airport is installing an instrument landing system. In addition, the airport has a 6,000-foot runway to handle a variety of aircraft.
Phase one of Schmidt’s work – a 276-page market feasibility study – has been completed and defines the airport’s service market to include 24 counties, which are closer to Elizabethtown than airports in Nashville, Louisville, Lexington and Evansville, Ind. This area represents a potential market of 350,214 passengers, spanning Glasgow, Leitchfield, Campbellsville and Bowling Green, according to Schmidt’s assessment.
More than 90 percent of plant managers surveyed about travel habits indicated they’d use Elizabethtown’s commercial service if it was established with competitive airfares, he said.
Phase two includes outreach to the 24-county area, Schmidt said, noting that 15 resolutions of support have already been passed by various councils.
“So far, the response that we’ve had in each of these counties has been very strong and positive,” Schmidt said.
He said Warren County officials haven’t been contacted yet, and neither Warren County Judge-Executive Mike Buchanon nor Bowling Green Mayor Elaine Walker could be reached for comment.
“This can be a lengthy process. We expect to begin recruiting an airline sometime in the second quarter. A lot will happen after that,” Schmidt said.
Resolutions of support are on the agenda at Morgantown City Council and Butler County Fiscal Court, where Butler Judge-Executive David Fields gives the airport’s project his full endorsement.
“The airline industry helps develop anything we can do in this area – we are for it,” Fields said. “As of right now, we have to go to Louisville or Nashville to catch a plane.”
Meanwhile, commercial jet service in Bowling Green still seeks solid ground.
Barnett said the airport board continually tracks companies that provide commercial jet service to communities the size of Bowling Green.
“Airlines are struggling to make ends meet today. Therefore, you are seeing more and more regional jet service providers surfacing throughout smaller, rural communities,” Barnett said.
Plans for a replacement airport and adjacent business campus to a less congested county corridor – nine miles east of the current site on Scottsville Road – are in a holding pattern, he said.
The Federal Aviation Administration is still examining financial aspects of such a move after an FAA-sponsored study was submitted more than six months ago. The current site is almost totally encircled by residential and commercial development, making it difficult to handle expanding FAA safety requirements, Barnett said at the time of the study.
Elizabethtown, Kentucky(October 25, 2006) – The Elizabethtown Airport Board today announced its intent to restore commercial airline service to Addington Field. Such service would be the first at the airport since 1987 when both Piedmont Airlines and Delta Air Lines served the field with commuter flights to Dayton and Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, respectively.
For Immediate Release
Elizabethtown Airport Board to Seek Commercial Airline Service
Project Responds to Area Requests and Recognizes Significant Growth Underway in City, Ft. Knox
Elizabethtown, Kentucky(October 25, 2006) – The Elizabethtown Airport Board today announced its intent to restore commercial airline service to Addington Field. Such service would be the first at the airport since 1987 when both Piedmont Airlines and Delta Air Lines served the field with commuter flights to Dayton and Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, respectively.
Joe Yates, Chairman of the Elizabethtown Airport Board stated that the Board decided to take this action as the result of numerous inquiries from area residents and businesses requesting that service be restored to the airport.
During the past year, the Board hired L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC, a Louisville-based consulting firm to conduct a feasibility study to determine the existence of a regional market for commercial airline service. The study was recently completed and the findings were presented to the Board.
Upon review of the findings, the Board decided to proceed to the project’s next phase, which will include building regional support for the project, addressing airport infrastructure issues, recruiting one or more airlines to start service to the airport and to develop passenger promotion strategies. The Board will target regional jet service aligned with a major carrier to one or more major connecting hubs. L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC will continue to provide assistance to the Board on all phases of the project.
Mr. Yates commented, “The Elizabethtown Airport Board has received many inquiries about restoring service to Addington Field. The Board conducted a market feasibility study and determined that a market does indeed exist.”
“The Board also recognizes the substantial growth that is occurring throughout the region – especially within the Elizabethtown Metro Area – and with BRAC. Fort Knox, which has always been a heavy user of commercial airline service, will continue to be a frequent user of airline service as the new Commands arrive on Post and also while the Armor Center transitions out toFt. Benning,” Yates observed.
Elizabethtown has developed as a major regional center which provides significant services in the areas of education, employment, health care and shopping. Mr. Yates stated that the Board believes that Elizabethtown can now also become a regional center for commercial airline service as well. The city’s central location will provide for both travel cost and time savings to area travelers when it comes to commercial air travel.
More importantly, Yates stated, the successful development of commercial airline service will provide many significant benefits to the region, including:
- Connect Elizabethtown, Ft. Knox and Central Kentucky to the global economy in a new and more efficient manner
- Provide Fort Knox personnel with almost immediate access to the nation’s air travel system
- Provide area economic development officials with a new tool which will make the region more attractive to potential new business and industry, thereby assisting in creating hundreds if not thousands of new jobs
The project is expected to take several months.
L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC has moved its offices from Charlotte, North Carolina to Louisville, Kentucky.
L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC has moved its offices from Charlotte, North Carolina to Louisville, Kentucky. The move provides the company with a more centralized location from which to conduct business, and recognizes a growing base of clients in the central part of the United States. Louisville provides a cost-efficient location for LBS&A with access to a major international airport.
The company’s new address is:
L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC
6316 Innisbrook Drive
Prospect, Kentucky 40059 USA
+ 1.502.292.2898 (Office)
+ 1.502.292.2899 (FAX)
+ 1.502.718.6342 (Mobile)
lbschmidt@lbschmidt.com (E-Mail)
www.lbschmidt.com (Web)
L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC (LBS&A) has been selected for a regional economic development project designed to develop passenger airline service at the Elizabethtown (KY) airport.
L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC (LBS&A) has been selected for a major economic development project by the Elizabethtown (KY) Airport Board. The Elizabethtown Airport Board manages the City’s regional airport and this new project represents the second project that the client has retained LBS&A to conduct.
The project follows-up an extensive market research assignment and centers on the development of passenger airline service at the client’s airport. The project will include regional outreach to elected and business officials, the development of collateral materials (including a Web site), the actual recruitment of one or more passenger airlines, assistance in the area of airport infrastructure issues and the development of passenger recruitment strategies.
L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC has been selected by a California-based manufacturing company to develop a global recycling system for its products.
L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC has been selected by a California-based manufacturing company to develop a global recycling system for its products. The appointment represents the company’s first assignment outside of North America. The project, which is related to the field of energy distribution, will start first in Europe and will ultimately expand to include North America and Asia.
The assignment will include an analysis of existing recycling operations, the development of end-use recycling markets for the company’s products, the development of logistical systems for retrieving the products and moving them to end-use markets and support for the system through multi-lingual communications programs on each continent.
L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC President Luke Schmidt was elected Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Sickle Cell Regional Network/Charlotte.
L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC President Luke Schmidt was elected Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Sickle Cell Regional Network/Charlotte. SCRN is the organization which addresses sickle cell disease issues in Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. Schmidt was appointed to the Board of Directors earlier in 2005.