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There is not enough information at this time to consider any mixed-use and or non-aeronautical uses of land at the Livermore Municipal Airport, city consultant C&S Companies has found.
The airport — with call sign LVK — would need to show it doesn’t need a portion of its land for aeronautical uses in present-day nor the future to utilize it for purposes including air cargo or research and development facilities related to aircraft movement, warehouses, offices, shopping centers, hotels and office buildings.
These and other findings were released in a technical memo, which analyses community feedback regarding land use at the airport as well as its physical, environmental, market and regulatory conditions. The memo, which includes a possible “blueprint” for the development of an airport and recommendations to the airport, will be presented to the Airport Commission next week and Livermore City Council in April.
The memo and presentation is part of the “Airport Land Use Analysis & Development Study” by the city, which will help determine the available and advisable use of its land in the present and future.
Designated as a general aviation reliever airport by the Federal Aviation Administration, LVK provides non-airline flight operations and averages over 180,000 combined takeoffs and landings annually. Customers and tenants of LVK include businesses, individuals and organizations.
The C&S study examined 14 undeveloped sites at LVK, accounting for 165 acres of property. They have the potential to accommodate varying land use types, according to the memo.
Nearly all of the airport property has been purchased or invested in using federal funding. Due to accompanying legal requirements called federal obligations, the land can only be used for aeronautical and airport purposes with limited flexibility.
The FAA allows airports some leeway regarding land use to best support the civil aviation system, airport tenants, and the broader community, according to the memo.
Federally obligated land at the airport is designated for aeronautical use by default, but the FAA can recategorize portions of land based on an airport’s request or a development proposal for mixed use or non-aeronautical use. In either case, the airport must demonstrate that the “subject property is not needed to accommodate current or future aeronautical demand over an extended timeframe”, according to the memo. As part of the process, the FAA must also approve changes to the development “blueprint”, called the Airport Layout Plan.
A need or lack of need for property to support aeronautical uses can be demonstrated through an Airport Master Plan, which lays out the airport’s development plans over a period of time, usually numbering 20 years.
While not required by the FAA, the last Airport Master Plan for LVK is outdated as it was conducted four decades ago and a more recent effort last decade was not completed.
As for the Airport Layout Plan, the most recent version of the AMP available to the consultant team was dated 2014.
In effect, LVK lacks the information necessary to know or demonstrate its foreseeable aeronautical needs and the demands for associated facilities, infrastructure and property, according to the memo. This means residual property at the airport cannot be fully identified and considered for other uses, including certain types of educational facilities strongly preferred by the community.
Off-airport property, there is limited land for potential development. There is potential for light industrial property to support advanced manufacturing or warehousing and distribution operations, particularly on the airport’s south side, according to the memo.
As for the near-future of the airport, C&S recommends establishing an updated 20-year forecast of aviation demand for LVK; evaluating specific demand for hangar space; verifying the current Airport Layout Plan status and considering the need for updates; identifying and implementing best practices to address operations including sensitive hours, touch-and-gos and approach elevations; providing forums and programming for ongoing community outreach and interaction as well as establishing and adhering to policies for communication with interested residents.
Mid- and long-term recommendations include conducting a comprehensive Airport Master Plan update, which should be revised through time in response to changing airport and community needs.
The findings and recommendations from C&S took into consideration community engagement including focus group interviews with community groups, emerging technology companies, flight schools, the fixed-base operator, pilots, tenants, local businesses and stakeholders; two open houses hosted by the city as well as an online survey from the city.
According to data collected by the city at its open house event, a key concern for the Livermore community is noise management over the next 20 years.
In response to previous noise-related concerns, LVK implemented a voluntary restraint from night flying policy to mitigate nighttime disturbances. During the period from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., the airport requests aircraft operators refrain from flying.
Airport stakeholders expressed an interest in managing airport growth, addressing demand for new hangars, cost-effective infrastructure improvements, limiting operations to smaller aircrafts while avoiding commercial airlines and cargo services as well as exploring non-aeronautical uses of the airport property.
The community also expressed an interest in opportunities for renewable energy generation, aviation research and development as well as emerging technologies like advanced air mobility, electric vertical takeoff and landing. They also requested increased communication regarding airport activities, stronger community outreach, events to foster public interaction and inter-agency coordination within the region.
The C&S memo will be presented at an Airport Commission special meeting, scheduled at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday (March 19).
