Greenville Business Magazine 2009 November : Page 23
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Greenville-Spartanburg Greenville-Spartanburg Airport, Chairman Roger Milliken said of the Upstate’s newest gem that it would be a “model of cooperation between Greenville and Spartanburg.” In the 47 years since Milliken spoke those words, the Upstate has experienced significant growth and expansion. The Greenville- Spartanburg metro area in particular has evolved from a small, textile region to a significant business hub for both national and international businesses, BMW and Michelin for example. Projects such as CU-ICAR have extended the net of collaboration far beyond Greenville and Spartanburg. CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE NOVEMBER 2009 | GREENVILLE BUSINESS MAGAZINE 23
>>special business report - GSP: Rebuilding the Gateway
Lisa Finley
Through this gateway will pass the people who will make the future of this area.”
These prophetic words were spoken on Sunday, October 14, 1962. The event was a luncheon attended by members of the Spartanburg and Greenville legislative delegations and airport commissioners. Only hours away from the grand opening of the Greenville-Spartanburg Airport, Chairman Roger Milliken said of the Upstate’s newest gem that it would be a “model of cooperation between Greenville and Spartanburg.”
In the 47 years since Milliken spoke those words, the Upstate has experienced significant growth and expansion. The Greenville-Spartanburg metro area in particular has evolved from a small, textile region to a significant business hub for both national and international businesses, BMW and Michelin for example. Projects such as CU-ICAR have extended the net of collaboration far beyond Greenville and Spartanburg.
Milliken’s “gateway, “now formally referred to as Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport (GSP), has been a key component of that success. According to Dave Edwards, GSP’s new executive director, the airport serves as a portal for more than 1.5 million travelers annually. Sixty percent of the travelers accessing the 70+ non-stop daily flights to cities such as Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas-Ft. Worth, New York, and Washington, he adds, are business travelers. Each arrival and departure fuels the economic engine of the Upstate.
In fact, a recent economic impact analysis, conducted by Tom Teveidt of Syneva Economics in Asheville, NC, indicates that GSP is expected to pump in excess of $377 million into the Upstate economy over the next year. More than $56 million will be generated by visiting GSP passengers alone.
The impact, though, extends much deeper into the community. Teveidt adds that airport activities support nearly 3,700 jobs in local businesses. Restaurants, hotels, car rental facilities, entertainment venues, and more benefit from the revenue generated by both business and recreational travelers.
Although Teveidt’s analysis is encouraging, Edwards acknowledges that GSP has some significant challenges to overcome – most notably that fewer people are passing through the GSP gateway. In the first quarter of 2009, airport leakage rates reached an alarming rate of 59 percent as an increasing number of travelers chose to depart from Atlanta or Charlotte.
In an effort to identify the reasons for this exodus, the Airport Commission conducted a survey of upstate businesses, community leaders and residents. Although multiple issues were indicated, the overwhelming consensus from the more than 10,000 responses was that non-competitive air fares were the primary reason for bypassing the local gateway.
It was evident to Edwards that the airport no longer fulfilled the expectations of its founders and the community it serves. If GSP was to compete with Atlanta and Charlotte, he knew that careful planning and significant toiling would be required.
The first priority, says Edwards, was to address concerns over air fares. “Our success in the community is hinged on that component.”
Edwards and his team are working to renegotiate fares with their existing airline partners - Allegiant Air, Continental, Delta Airlines, Northwest Air Link, American Eagle, United Express and US Airways. Talks have also been initiated with potential new airline partners, the goal of which is to include at least one low-fare carrier. Of top concern, he says, is ensuring that they [the airlines] are financially healthy and capable of offering competitive air fares.
Competitive rates are just one priority, though.
To determine other ways in which GSP can enhance facilities and services, Edwards has hired Reynolds, Smith & Hill. Over the next nine months, the Jacksonville, FL, company will conduct a Terminal Area Plan Study (TAPS). Every aspect of the physical area will be examined, including parking lots, ticket counters, office space, baggage areas, security check points, gate areas and all functional components. A portion of the study will also evaluate ways in which the airport can minimize its impact on the surrounding environment. First phase results of TAPS are expected to be released in the Spring/Summer 2010 timeframe.
“From a facility perspective, [in five years] I’d like to see us fully engaged and moving ahead with plans developed from our Terminal Area Plan Study,” says Edwards. “This study will set the stage for future terminal development over the next 30 to 50 years.”
At the conclusion of that study, Edwards plans to return to the founder’s traditions of collaboration between businesses, city and county leadership, and concerned citizens. In a series of community-wide meetings, feedback will be sought from community stakeholders about the plans for expansion and growth. A key component of those meetings will be to generate ideas specifically on how to transform the aesthetic appearance of the airport.
Edwards says he envisions a facility that will not only provide efficient, high-quality service, competitive air fares and top-notch customer service, but one that also “mirrors the Upstate community and provides a sense of place.”
Summarizing, Edwards says, “GSP is a key component to the economic engine of the Upstate. [We have] a huge opportunity to improve the quality of life in the Upstate.”
He is confident that the Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport will soon resume her title of “gateway” to the world.
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