ECTOR COUNTY, Texas — The Odessa-Schlemeyer Field Airport has been a hot button topic in Ector County. Decisions are being made to change the airport from the privately run fixed-bas operator (FBO) to a county-run entity. This has left many community members unhappy.
Another notable person who this raised concern for was Ector County Judge Dustin Fawcett.
"Is this the role of county government to get into the airport business and be the largest county run airport whenever our profit margins are less than having someone else," said Judge Fawcett at Tuesday's commissioner meeting. "What’s the intent?"
All of the commissioners except for Judge Fawcett voted to post a job opening for an airport manager at the airport.
In the past three months, commissioners have decided it was best to work toward making the airport county run.
"They came to us and and said, well, what if we instead of having hiring another FBO to manage this, putting it out for RFP, what if we do it ourselves, and is there time to do it," said Airport Manager Mark Merritt. "We said if you do it now."
The very people who work out of the airport, however, were taken by surprise.
"I heard it through our maintenance facility, what was going on," said Ashli Cline, the maintenance coordinator for CSI Aerial Patrol. "So if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't even know that this was going on and then that would put us come September, if it goes completely through, it would leave us out high and dry."
The main concerns raised by the many small business located inside the airport were reliable fuel access, good customer service and maintenance upkeep.
"I've been in situations with a county on FBO before where they're fuel trucks don't work because they don't have the budget to get the newer, better equipment that works all the time," said Steven Weston, flight manager at Odessa-Schlemeyer Field Airport.
However, this was also about them not being seen throughout the decision-making process.
"We are not getting an option as to it was tax dollar monies and we have no option and what they're going to do with them," said Ector County Safety Professional Krisha Marker. "I feel that we're being run over and taken advantage of on this situation."
The county is committed to running a successful airport, so the next step is looking into training for future staff.
"You have to start hiring now, looking for people, setting job descriptions, getting salaries from other airports to see what they pay for line guys, for other receptionists and people that do custom jobs at the airport and seek out what those certifications are that need to be done," said Merritt.
Marker agues it's just not that easy.
"I just feel that they are not gonna have in three days, they said they could have the training in order to be readily available to work and bring planes in and tax them out," Marker said. "Unfortunately, you have to do a hundred of those, it's not just a three day training. There is also the time you have to practice and be working in that world before you can actually say these people are trained."
Come Oct. 1, Ector County commissioners hope the airport will be ready for a smooth transition of power.
While airport workers still hope the county will change their minds.