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Council approves AirEvac lease at Keokuk Municipal Airport after airport manager outlines $2M annual economic impact
Summary
The council approved a ground lease with AirEvac Life Team for airport land, which airport staff say will bring a hangar, increased fuel sales and $12,000 a year in lease revenue; the airport manager presented data showing growing fuel sales and warned closing the airport would trigger reimbursements of roughly $7.9 million in past grants.
Keokuk — The City Council voted Jan. 28 to approve a ground lease with AirEvac Life Team for city-owned property at Keokuk Municipal Airport that will let AirEvac construct a 45-by-50-foot hangar plus modular offices and operate a base for medical flights starting March 1, 2026.
Mike King of AirEvac said the company will build a new hangar that ultimately would become city property and install a modular facility for personnel. The initial lease term is 10 years with two five-year renewal options and annual rent increases baked into the contract, King said.
Airport Manager Raymond Ott presented a packet of airport financials and an economic-impact summary that estimated the Keokuk Municipal Airport contributes about $2 million annually to the local economy and supports fuel sales, hangar leases and local jobs. Ott said fuel sales rose 41% between fiscal years 2023 and 2025 and projected AirEvac would buy roughly 17,000 gallons of jet fuel a year, further boosting airport revenue.
Ott also warned that closing the airport would require the city to repay roughly $7,856,421 in state and federal grants received over the past two decades, a liability he said would fall on local taxpayers.
Council members asked how the lease would affect the budget. Staff said the lease would add about $12,000 annually to general revenues and increase fuel sales, both of which were incorporated into budget discussions earlier in the meeting.
Mark Fack, an airport-commission member, urged the council to retain the airport as city-managed rather than return to a fixed-base operator model, arguing city management had increased fuel profits since 2020. The council voted to approve the ground-lease resolution.
Next steps: City staff will finalize executed lease documents and coordinate necessary site and construction approvals with AirEvac.
