,

U.S. Deportment of Tn:m~ 

OOk::e ot the Seaetory of TtomparloHOn 

Mr. Paul A. Lyden 

Vice President 

Lyden Oil Company 

ll LeHarps Drive 

Youngstown, OH 44515 

Dear Mr. Lyden: · 

Assislonl Sflcrttory 

July 3, 2012 

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

the Youngstown~Warren RegiOlutl Airport. for a .grant under the U.S. Department of 

Tr~msportation's Small Community Air Service Development Program. The Secretnry has 

requested that I respond on his behalf. 

The SmaU Community Air Service Development (lrogram was established to help smaller 

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

insuffieieot service. Under the statute, the Departn1en.t may a maximum of 40 grant 

awards each year, although no more than 4 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 ofprojects that can be funded. 

On May I the Department issued an order requesting that comtnunities i.nterested in receiving a 

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

Department, .l cannot cornment on the merits particular proposal. I assure you that the 

Department will give full and fair conS:lderattonto all proposals that have been properly filed. 

As is our normal practice, J mn plaeing a qopy of your letter attd this response in Docket 

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

this program. 

Sincerely 

Kurland 

Secretary for 

Aviation and lnternatlonal Affairs 

• 
1'he Honorable Ray LaHood 

Secretary of Transportation 

u.s. Department ofTransportation 

400 ih Street,sw, Room !5401 

WashlngtQn, DC 20590 

Dear Secretary LaHood: 

Community 

We are writing to express our support for the Vour~~stown~W~rren Regional Airport's grant application for funding under the 

smaU Community Air SeM<:e Development Program. A successful grant application is eKtremely lm!)ortantto hEalplng the 

·Airport achieve Its proposed PassengedieNlce Enhancement Strategy that wm lead to reestablishing regularly scheduled 

commerclall!llr service In the Voungstown/Warren/SI"raron MSA.. 

During the past 15 years, the Alr:porthas received in excess of $60 mUli(;}n frQm federal, state and local government agencies 

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

busines$es through the creation of the,Western Reserve Port Authority~ which owns and manages 1he Airport. . Although the 

· c.omrnunit.y ls;sttonglv supportive of the Airport, the lack of competitiVe prici~ and quality air serVices In the past has now 

caused the A.irportto be underutilited and consequehce, 800,000 reSidents of Easter Ohi.o and Westel11 Pennsylvania 

now to drive to Cleveland or Pittsburgh ror their air need. !.arget airports now reqUire an additional one to two 

hours for to secure parking and dear the security which makes it even more dlffi.cult for our 

residents to travel. The suooess of other regional.airports such as Akron·Canton clearly demonstrates that there Is a viable 

place for small to midsize airports in the aviation industrv. With the. assistance of this grant, the Airport would bill 

offer superior air services at lower costs to the community and woutd c:.ontribute greatly to securing the future of the Airport. 

Congress developed this program specifically to help communities like the Youngstown/Warren Sharon MSA.lmprove their 

.business climate, spur economic del!elppment,and enhance the quality of !Iff; through the development of alr service. The 

Youngstown/Warren/St\ilttonMSA is the most concentrated manufacturing regl61l h"' Ohio, but has one ofthe highest 

unemployment rates of any MSA In Ohio. As the Airport is a t;rltical. component of the community's economic development 

sfrategy,failure to redevelop air service wHI only impede our ability to attract and retaln employers to. our community. 

Therefore it Is Imperative that our AtrportJs successft.tl.ln securing funding under the Small Community Alr Service 

D.evelopment Progran1. 

We-support and appreciate your posltlve consideration of the proposal fora.Small Community Air Service Development 8rant 

for the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport and the Cl\llrnmunlty it serves. 

Paul A. t,yden, Vice "'~'~"';lnll>nT 

Lyden Oil Company