Winter 2020 Airport Update

by Warren Hendrickson, Airport Manager

Date: Jan 13, 2020
Happy New Year! I trust the holiday season treated everyone well. Hopefully you had an opportunity to visit the airport to see the magnificent decorations on our Port office and airport facilities. Kudos to the airport maintenance staff for a superb job!
Airport Maintenance Pole BuildingAirport Maintenance Pole Building

Before we look at where we are going in 2020, a retrospective look at this past year would be most appropriate. Here is a recap of the capital projects completed in 2019:

  1. Runway/Taxiway/Signage Lighting Design
  2. Maintenance Pole Building Design & Bid Award
  3. Relocation of Maintenance Operations Facility Gate
  4. Hangars 7 & 8 Repainting
  5. SAFE Boats Roof Replacement (OVIBP 5)
  6. Airport Entry & Directory Signage
  7. Olympic View Industrial Business Park (OVIBP) Signage
  8. South Hangar Project Environmental Review

 

We have 16 capital projects planned at the airport this coming year. Please reference the linked Airport Project Management Plan on this page for a complete list of 2020 projects. 

 

Among them, the first project of 2020 is now underway: construction of the Maintenance Pole Building – a storage facility for the airport's heavy equipment.

 

Beyond mortar, asphalt, and trusses, several notable agreements were also achieved to support airport operations and the wider community. Last year's "snowpocalypse" experience provided an opportunity to enhance coordination on a wider scale for more effective snow removal operations. In a great example of inter-governmental cooperation, the Port of Bremerton, City of Bremerton, and Kitsap County have done exactly that to ensure community needs are met. In addition, agreements were crafted and signed to use airport facilities in the event of a major natural disaster – such as a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake – and to ensure we effectively employ a wildlife management plan to achieve a higher level of operational safety and prevent aircraft damage. Here are the 2019 agreements completed: 

1. Interlocal Agreement

  • Parties: Port of Bremerton, City of Bremerton, and Kitsap County
  • Purpose: Snow Removal Operations & Contingency Planning

2. Memorandum of Agreement 2020-2024

  • Parties: Port of Bremerton, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
  • Purpose: Use of closed Runway 16-34 for supplies/equipment positioning and transfer in event of a natural disaster

3. Cooperative Service Agreement 2020-2024

  • Parties: Port of Bremerton, USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service-Wildlife Services (APHIS-WS)
  • Purpose: Airport Wildlife Management Plan

 

Commercial Aviation Coordinating Commission (CACC):

The CACC has been created and tasked by the state legislature to identify a new commercial aviation facility by January 1, 2022. Airport Manager Warren Hendrickson serves as Vice Chair of the commission and as Chair of the Transportation and Land Use Technical Working Group, a CACC subcommittee. Current projections indicate that Sea-Tac International Airport will reach its capacity in 2027, and by 2050, Sea-Tac will be 22-27 million enplanements short of fulfilling the forecast passenger demand. Choosing one (or possibly more) future commercial facilities will be critical to the state's economy. Bremerton National Airport is among the sites that will be receiving consideration to meet this need. The Port is actively observing the CACC process and its evaluations.

"RRAP" (Pronounced "ARE-RAP." Who knew?)

On December 10, the airport was visited and toured by members of the Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (DHS CISA), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Washington State Department of Emergency Management (DEM), WSDOT Aviation, Kitsap County Department of Emergency Management, and Port of Bremerton consultants. The visit's purpose was to conduct an airfield resilience study as part of the Washington Department of Transportation Regional Resilience Assessment Program (RRAP). This assessment seeks to ascertain the ability of Washington State airports to serve as staging areas following a catastrophic magnitude 9.0 Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake. Only seven airports are being examined this year and Bremerton National Airport was honored to be among the first to be visited. This visit was quite timely given the execution of the FEMA agreement mentioned earlier.

 

Recognition Corner:

Maintenance Lead Ed Draper has been formally recognized by the Port for devoting over 30 years of outstanding service as a Port employee. Only three Port employees have ever achieved a 30-year milestone. Congratulations Ed and thank you!

 

All of us at the airport – regardless our specific role – are a team. I invite your participation, your questions, and your feedback. Please feel free to contact me any time. Thank you…

 

Warren Hendrickson

Airport Manager

warrenh@portofbremerton.org

(360) 813-0828