By Lyra Bordelon
Congresswomen Carol Miller visited the Greenbrier Valley Airport and a number of Greenbrier County officials and organizers on Friday, July 17. Miller’s seat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee prompted her visit to the airport, as well as several other locations in southern West Virginia.
Before the tour, a socially distant and masked meeting was held between Miller and members of the Greenbrier Valley Economic Development Corporation, county officials, airport employees, and other interested parties about what they need.
“It’s great anytime we can host a member of the Congressional delegation,” explained Airport Director Brian Belcher. “If they know what the airport’s needs are, there’s [sometimes] a way they can help if they can. Sometimes they might not be able to, but at least they know what our needs are and we can work with them to get things done here. There are a lot of projects that we can do at this airport; they’re not always FAA eligible for funding, so we need other avenues of funding to get them done”
“I talked about my year and a half in Congress and what I’m trying to accomplish, which is economic development of southern West Virginia,” Miller said. “I look at myself as an ambassador, meeting with ambassadors of foreign countries, that are our friends, to let them know what we have in southern West Virginia, our opportunities for people who want to invest. I think we need to reinvest and reinvent and make southern West Virginia shine again. Economic development, job creation, opportunity, whatever I can do in my position in Congress to put people together.”
Talk of tourism and airport funds were also important to the meeting – revenue for airports across the United States is massively down as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread.
“We talked about how COVID-19 affected all of us,” Miller said. “… Times have been a little uncertain but we’re all going to move forward. We are all going to get through this. … Our airports have really suffered – millions and millions of dollars lost. It’s been a bad thing.”
Despite the hit to reserves, the airport’s operating account was saved by grant funding from Congress in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The funds allowed the airport to continue to function while air travel is massively reduced.
“Our rents and our fuel sales go into an operating account and it currently has $110,000 in it,” Belcher previously explained to the Mountain Messenger. “We got $1,042,000 from the CARES Act and we’re using that to pay employee benefits so we don’t have to lay anyone off during the COVID-19 pandemic. … That money would have normally come out of the operating budget, so now we’re able to save into the operating budget … which will last us a little over a year.”
Miller also noted Congress is working on a fifth COVID-19 response bill this week but was unable to say what would be in it.
Riding alongside Belcher, Miller and Michael Chirico, a member of her staff, were able to see the many planes, hangers, fuel tanks, and more facilities scattered across the airport grounds.
“It was mostly an informational meeting when we did the tour,” Belcher said. “We were talking about how the airport runs. You saw the private jets that are out here behind us, and we work those jets when they land and we sell the fuel to them, so we explained how everything works. Just went over some of the projects that are going on.”
Millers assignment on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee also brings another key issue southern West Virginia into the spotlight – internet connectivity infrastructure. Miller stated the meeting highlighted a few ongoing projects that could improve the region’s connectivity.
“The number one hurdle we have is infrastructure, it’s broadband,” Miller said. “I’m already hearing plans of what we would like to do here through economic development. The Facebook [broadband] trunk is coming from Ohio through Beckley, how we can hook people up that way. Some of it is very basic – it’s water and sewer. West Virginia has been long to the table in getting everybody connected for a lot of different reasons. A lot of people are independent and don’t want to get hooked up. We just need to do whatever we can to make it appealing to businesses coming in.”
Belcher cited a recently funding $1.5 million project through the FAA that the congresswoman was able to help get to the Greenbrier Valley Airport as a reason he was excited when she reached out for a visit and tour.
“The airport is a gateway into this region,” Belcher said. “It’s not just Lewisburg and White Sulphur Springs, I consider it the whole region. You have Snowshoe, The Greenbrier, the Homestead, that’s three major resorts and we’re the closest airport. … Her staff [and her] will go back and find ways they can help not only the airport, but the whole region. I think the airport is [important] for economic development in the whole region and with everybody working together, the county, economic development people, the state, the Congresswoman, her staff, if we all work together I think we can get a lot done here.”
In order to reach Miller with potential issues or concerns, a contact form can be found at https://miller.house.gov/contact.
