US. Department of 

Transportation 

Office of the Secretary · · · of Transportation 

Mr. JohnR. Chappie 

· · Chairman, Dlstric't 3 

· ..... :, . 

JUL 

Manatee County Board of Commissioners 

1112 Manatee A venue West 

Bradenton, FL 34205 

Dear Mr. Chappie: 

' ·~ ' 

5 2012 

1 200 New Jersey Avenue, SE 

Washington, DC 20590 

Thank you for your letter supporting the· proposal submitted by the Sarasota Bradenton 

International Airport for a grant under the U.S. Department of Transportation's Small 

Community Air Service Development Program. 

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 15, the Department issued an order requesting that communities interested 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 properly 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 ofthis matter. I appreciate your interest in 

this program. 

Sincerely yours, 

,L1Q~~ ;-\~1 6 

Aloha Ley 

Associate Director 

Small Community Program 

.· 
. ·. · ... 

June 21, 2012 

Ms. Aloha Ley 

Manatee County Commissioner 

John Chappie, District 3 

Office of Aviation Analysis 

1200 New Jersey Ave., SE, W86-310 

Washington, DC 20590 

Re: Small Community Air Service Development Program 

Docket DOT -OST -2012-0069 

Sarasota Bradenton International Airport (SRQ) 

Dear Ms. Ley: 

~ ... · .. 

I am writing as Single County Commissioner in support for the above referenced grant application to 

the Small Community Air Service Development Program. Sarasota Bradenton lnternationar Airport 

(SRQ) presentry lacks access to a westbound airline gateway. As a result, consumers must drive to 

other airports which, in turn, damages our local economy. 

Compounding matters, Southwest Airlines decided to pull Air Tran service from SRQ resulting in a 

major blow to the air service and economic competiveness for the whole region served by Sarasota 

Bradenton International Airport. Air Tran accounted for more than 360,000 passengers each year, 

nearly one-third of all passenger traffic at SRQ in 2011. Using the Calendar Year 2011 Air Tran 

passenger traffic, this equates to 102,600 visitors to the SRQ area. When combined with the 100,000 

passeng~rs lost due to no westbound service, this equates to a loss of over $105,000,000 of direct 

visitor expenditures annually: When the multiplier effect is factored in,· it equates to cnoss of nearly 

$285,000,000 of economic impact and 2,600 jobs to the area. 

As a single Commissioner, I would like to ask the Department to seriously consider the negative effects 

the recent approval provided to Southwest Airlines to acquire Air Tran Airways has had on our 

community and approve the application for assistance. · 

Thank you in advance for your consideration in this matter. 

Sincerely, 

J.~t{·+ JOHN R. CHAPPlE 

Chairman 

Cc: The Honorable Ray H. LaHood 

Secretary of Transportation 

United States Department of Transportation 

1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E. 

Washington, DC 20590 

cc: Manatee-.Board ofCounty Commissions 

This correspondence is being sent from Jolm Chappie as an individual County Commissioner. 

Contact Information: john.dwppie'o.myman:.~tec.org: Phone: 941.745.3705 Fax: 941.745.3790 

P.O. Box 1000. Bradenton. FL 34206, 1112 :VInnatee Avenue West. Bradenton, FL 34205 

:V1anatee County Website: hrm:'-www.mymanaree.org