U.S. Department 

of Transportation 

Office of the Secretary 

of Transportation 

The Honorable Curt Moll 

Mayor of Cortland 

Cortland, OH 44410 

Dear Mayor Moll: 

Assistant Secretary 

.July 3 • 2012 

1200 Now Jersoy Avonuo. SE 

Wasllinglon, DC 20590 

Thank you for your letter addressed to Secretary LaHood supporting the proposal submitted by 

the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport for a grant under the U.S. Department of 

Transportation~s Small Community Air Service Development Program. The Secretary has 

requested that I respond on his behalf. 

The Small Community Air Service Development Program was established to help smaller 

communities address air service deficiencies, particularly issues related to high airfares or 

insufficient service. Under the statute, the Department may make a maximum of 40 grant 

awards each year, although no more than 4 awards may be to·communities in the same State. 

In order to provide communities with latitude in developing solutions to their air service 

deficiencies, the statute provides flexibility'in the types of projects that can be funded. 

On May IS, the Department issued an order requesting that communities interestep in receiving a 

grant this year file their applications by June 11. As these grant requests are pending before the 

Department, I cannot comment on the merits of any particular proposal. I assure you that the 

Department will give full and fair consideration to all proposals that have been property filed. 

As is our normal practice, I am placing a copy of your letter and this response in Docket 

DOT~OST-2012-0069 as a contact outside the record of this matter. I appreciate your interest in 

this program. 

510-120612-014 

Sincerely yours, 

usan L. Kurland 

Assistant Secretary for 

Aviation and International Affairs 
mm 

Mayor City of Cortland 

June 4, 2012 

The Honorable Ray LaHood 

Secretary of Transportation 

400 North High Street, Cortland, Ohio 44410 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

400 7th Street, SW, Room 640 I 

Washington, DC 20590 

Subject: Youngstown~Warren Regional Airport 

Small Community Air Service Development Program Grant Application 

Docket DOT ~OST-2012-0069 

Dear Secretary LaHood: 

We are writing to respectfillly express our support for the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport's grant application for 

funding under the Sinall Community Air Service Development Program. A successful grant application is one of several 

steps in the Airport's proposed Passenger Service Enhancement Strategy to reestablished regularly scheduled commercial 

air service in the Youngstown-Warren-Sharoa metropolitan service area. 

During the past 15 years, the Airport has received in excess of$60 million from federal, state, and local government 

agencies for capital improvements. The local community has formed a vital partnership of governments and private 

organizations and businesses through the creation of the Western Reserve Port Authority, which owns and manages the· 

Airport. Although the community is strongly supportive of the Airport, the lack of competitive pricing and quality air 

services in the past has n9w caused the Airport to be underutilized and has resulted in the 800,000 residents of .Eastern 

Ohio and Western Pennsylvania to drive to Cleveland or Pittsburgh for their air travel needs. fu addition, larger airports 

now require an additional one to two hours for air travelers to secure parking and check through security systems. The 

success of other regional airports such as Akron-Canton clearly demonstrates that there is a viable place for small to 

midsize airports in the aviation industry. With the assistance of this grant, the Airpoxt would be able to offer superior air 

services at lower costs to the community and would contribute greatly to securing the future of the Airport. 

Congress developed this program specifically to help communities like the Youngstown-Warren-Sharon metropolitan 

service area improve their business climate, spur economic development, and enhance the quality of life through the 

development of air service. The Youngstown-Warren-Sharon metropolitan service area is the most concentrated 

manufacturing region in Ohio but has one ofthe highest unemployment rates of any metropolitan area in Ohio. As the 

Airport is a critical component of the community's economic development strategy, failure to redevelop air service will 

only impede our ability to attract and retain employers to our community. Therefore, it is imperative that our Airport is 

successful in securing funding under the Small Community Air Service Development Program. 

We support and appreciate your positive consideration of the proposal for a Small Community Air Service Development 

Program grant for the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport and the community it serves. 

Sincerely, 

WM!f 

Curt Moll 

Mayor 

S10-12061:2-014