Airport(s):
Naples Municipal Airport (APF)
Abstract:
The Office of the Chief Counsel responded to a joint request from the City of Naples and the City of Naples Airport Authority regarding whether the City of Naples, a non-proprietor, may require the City of Naples Airport Authority to seek approval to expand a runway at the Naples Municipal Airport (Florida). The Airport is located on land owned by the City but is leased and operated by the City of Naples Airport Authority. (p. 1).|The Airport Authority was planning on extending the pavement of one of its existing runways by approximately 1300 feet within the bounds of existing Airport property. Under the City of Naples Code of Ordinances, the Airport Authority was required to obtain conditional use approval from the City Council in order to proceed with the extension. Through the ordinance, the non-proprietor City was attempting to regulate aircraft noise, safety, and flight operations using its police powers. (pp. 2-3).|Traditionally, airport proprietors own and operate the airport; promote the airport; and have the power and authority to control airport noise, including the power to acquire airport land, assure compatible land uses, and control airport design, scheduling and operations. Because non-proprietors have no proprietary interest in an airport, they may not rely upon the “proprietor exception” to regulate noise, aircraft management or safety. (p. 5).|Under federal law, the non-proprietor City has no legal authority to use its police powers to regulate either: (1) the conditions, including prescribed runway length, that limit the type of aeronautical activity at the Airport; or (2) the types of flight operations that can be conducted at the airport, directly or indirectly. Only the airport proprietor may regulate the airport in this manner and it must do so consistent with federal law. By limiting the length of the runway, the non-proprietor City is impermissibly limiting the types of aircraft that may serve the Airport. Enforcement of the City’s ordinance is preempted under federal law. (p. 9).
Index Terms:
Noise|Non-proprietor|Preemption|Proprietary powers exception|Safety