Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Comment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Residents raise wetlands, costs and transparency concerns at Richmond Hill airport meeting
Summary
Multiple public commenters at the Aug. 18 meeting urged caution on wetlands mitigation costs, questioned project transparency and raised representation and safety concerns; Commissioner Dr. Gene Wallace also questioned the county's capacity to fund the project given flat SPLOST revenues.
During the public-comment period at the Richmond Hill–Bryan County Airport Authority meeting, several residents urged the board to address environmental risks, project costs and transparency before moving forward.
Stephanie Falls warned of "high wetlands mitigation costs (potentially exceeding the $20M budget)" and asked for a timeline for the Georgia Tech tax revenue study. Cynthia Hatala said the county should "fix current infrastructure (flooding/drainage) before spending $128M on an airport," questioned the local pilot base and expressed concern about conflicts of interest among board members who are pilots. Corey Foreman criticized what he described as a lack of transparency and public outreach and questioned the decision to site the project on wetlands near residences.
Dr. Gloria Shearin said there has been a "total lack of transparency" and cautioned that clear-cutting could worsen flooding. Meredith Gibson urged the appointment of a communications expert and voiced support for a general aviation airport rather than the alternative of housing or industrial development. Teresa Timmons urged the board to consult aviation operator experts, citing the death of her pilot husband at an airport without air traffic control. Julie Pecenka questioned the lack of female or person-of-color representation on the board and asked why the meeting was not livestreamed; she also disputed reports that Governor Kemp described the airport as intended for freight/FedEx rather than general aviation.
Commissioner Dr. Gene Wallace, speaking during public comment, said he was "concerned with lack of communication with the public" and questioned whether the county could afford the airport given flat SPLOST (sales tax) revenues. The board did not adopt any formal changes in response during the meeting; officials said follow-up studies (Georgia Tech analysis and GDOT regional study) will inform later decisions.
