Horace Williams Airport to Shut Down

The airport, which is located off Airport Road, occupies a portion of the Horace Williams tract, a 979-acre parcel of land owned by UNC. On 575 acres of the tract, officials plan to develop a state-of-the-art mixed-use complex that would include research facilities and residences for students and families. These areas should not be affected by the airport's closing.

The airport houses about 25 privately owned planes, seven of which are owned by the University.

In addition, the N.C. Area Health Education Centers Program, which is based in the UNC School of Medicine, has used the airport to transport faculty statewide so it can provide speciality clinics and educational programs.

"Closure will take effect as soon as we can negotiate a new location," Moeser said during the press conference. "We estimate at least two to three months before a move can take place."

At that point, Moeser said, he hopes a new location will have been found to house AHEC's operation. He mentioned Raleigh-Durham International Airport as a possible option.

The primary reason for closing the airport, Moeser said, stems from the facility's inability to financially support itself. He said that in the last decade, UNC spent an average of $250,000 to meet the airport's capital cost expenses. All told, the airport is expected to record an operating deficit totaling about $100,000 for the 2001-02 fiscal year, he said.

Moeser discounted the notion that accidents by the Chapel Hill Flying Club, a community organization that gives flying lessons, was to blame for the closing. Moeser ousted the club almost a year ago after it had three crashes in two years.

Tom Bacon, director of AHEC, said he doesn't expect the planned move to cost any employees their jobs. "When we met with staff this morning, they were very committed to working with us."

Last week, the UNC Board of Trustees discussed behind closed doors legalities surrounding the matter, Moeser said. "It didn't require any action by the board," he said after the press conference.

Moeser said discussions have been going on for weeks. "It's been factors ranging from budget issues to compliance with (Federal Aviation Administration) regulations to creating Carolina North."

According to FAA regulations, the airport would have had to cut down a significant number of trees both on the Horace Williams property and within neighboring tracts that UNC does not own. "The tree-removal issue was a major issue in the deliberations," Moeser said.

Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy, who attended the press conference, said he is enthusiastic about UNC's decision.

"From the town's point of view, there are a lot of good reasons for the airport to close," Foy said.

In addition, the variation to the existing land-use plan could extend the life of the Chapel Hill Public Works Facility. "It opens up the possibility that public works won't need to be moved as soon as planned," Foy said. The facility is expected to be moved by 2007, when construction on the Horace Williams tract will take place.

RDU spokeswoman Mindy Hamlin said the international airport's officials welcome conversation with UNC representatives about relocating the AHEC operation. She also said two companies, Piedmont Hawthorne Aviation and Southern Jet, have storage room up for sale should the about 25 owners need to find a home for their private planes. "Those two places do provide areas for private companies as well as people to house their planes so those places would be where people would," she said.

But Moeser said he anticipates a brighter future for the tract. "A new visioning process for that has just begun."

The City Editor can be reached at citydesk@unc.edu.