DeKalb commissioners approve new landing-fee framework at Peachtree Airport, exempting aircraft up to 9,000 pounds

DeKalb County commissioners voted to adopt a substitute ordinance authorizing landing fees at Peachtree-DeKalb Airport (PDK) and setting the exemption threshold for aircraft weight at 9,000 pounds. The committee approved the substitute ordinance after discussion of fee structure, expected revenue and implementation details.

The ordinance amends chapter 6, article 3 of the DeKalb County Code to permit landing fees for transient aircraft and delegates authority to set the price-per-thousand-pounds fee level to board action. Director Hines, the airport director, told the committee the substitute increases the weight of aircraft that are exempt from landing fees from 6,000 to 9,000 pounds “as recommended by the airport advisory board.” He said tenants are exempt from landing fees and that the ordinance also exempts military, medevac and law-enforcement aircraft.

Why it matters: County staff presented a landing-fee revenue projection based on a vendor’s suggested fee schedule and February 2024 activity; staff said the projection estimates roughly $3 million in annual revenue under the suggested rates. Commissioners discussed the tradeoffs between revenue and encouraging small private aviators, as well as noise and equity concerns raised by residents and advisory-board members.

Discussion and implementation: Commissioners asked how many transient flights would be affected, what types of aircraft fall under the 9,000-pound threshold and whether the change would reduce transient traffic. Director Hines said the category largely covers single‑engine piston and small twin‑prop aircraft and that the airport’s vendor benchmarks comparable airports when recommending fees. Commissioners noted the vendor recommendation placed a smaller-piston landing fee at about $10 per visit under the previously proposed threshold.

Commissioner Ted Terry and others urged following the airport advisory board’s recommendation. The director said the advisory board had already adopted the 9,000-pound threshold at a prior meeting and that the landing-fee projection document had been updated accordingly. Staff also told commissioners an RFP will be issued to select a vendor to collect the fees once the board finalizes the fee schedule.

Outcome: The committee approved the substitute ordinance by voice vote. Staff will return with vendor procurement materials and the board will set the fee amounts by subsequent action.

Provenance: The committee considered this substitute ordinance on the Operations Committee agenda and discussed it at length, including presentation by Director Hines, commissioner questions, and the substitute vote recorded in the transcript.