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Businesses Ask: <br />How Far To The Airport? <br /> <br />Airporl sites and capacity affec~ <br />business location decisions. With <br />executives' time at a premium. <br />chose proximiLv to an airport is desirable. <br />^ stud.',' developing long-Icftu ~uide- <br />lines for the stale's aviation system is <br />under v,'av, according to Lee ~Xiunnich. <br />assistant commissioner of the Minnesol:~ <br />Departmem of Trade and Economiz <br />Development's (DTED)Policy Anall'- <br />sis, Science and Technology DMsion. <br />Munnich is a member of the state <br />aviation advisory commiuee tha~ <br />includes representatives from federal. <br />state and local ?,'ernments. avialion <br />users and private industry. Results of the <br /> <br />economic impact segment of the stud,,' <br />should be available later this 3'ear, <br />Munnich said. but Minnesota Depart- <br />ment of Transportation IMnDOT)offi- <br />cials estimate lha~ the stale's airporl <br />system pumps approximately S4.3 <br />billion and 49.000 jobs intt, the <br />Minnesota economy. <br /> Currently. there are 141 publicly- <br />owned airports in Minnesota. Approxi- <br />match' 90 percem of the state's popu- <br />lation is within 30 minutes driving time <br />to an airport, an6 within 60 minutes <br />drMng time to an airport with scheduled <br />service, according lo task force member <br />Ken Hoeper of the MnDOT Office of <br />Aeronautics. <br /> Airport service affects job crealion. <br />Munnich cited a national survey <br />conducted bi' McGra,,v-Hill Research <br /> <br />Approximately 90 percent <br />of the state's population is <br />within 30 minutes driving <br />time to an airport and <br />within 60 minutes driving <br />time to an airport with <br />scheduled service. <br /> <br />The state's airport L~ <br />system pumps opproxi- _J~-~-..._~.~. <br />mately $4.3 billion and ~ <br />49 DOD jobs into the ~5 <br />Minnesota economy. ~ <br /> <br /> · -., .... '; .... ....... <br /> <br />for Business Il'eeL' which showed thai <br />bein~ near an airport is becoming more <br />important in plant location decisions. In <br />1987.42 percem of the manufacturers <br />surveyed said that proximily Io an <br />airport was importanl in choosing u <br />plant sile. compare6 with 26 percenl in <br />1976. Service induslries placed even <br />higher importance on nearness to an <br />airport, with more than 45 percent citing <br />it as vital in location decisions. <br /> Scheduled service is currently avail- <br />able in Minneapolis/St. Paul. Rochester. <br />\Vorthinglon. Fairmont. Mankato. <br />Duluth. Brainerd. Bemidji. Fargo/ <br />Moorhead. Grand Rapids. Marshall. <br />Thief River Falls. Chisholm/Hibbing. <br />\Vinona ('through La Crosse. Wis.). <br />lmernational Falls and Grand Forks/ <br />Eas~ Grand Forks. Scheduled service is <br />important. Hoeper said. because it is the <br />most efficient form of transportation for <br />business. When the costs of drMng. <br />overnighl room and board, and lost <br />working hours are totaled up. Hoeper <br />said. it's allen cheaper to fix' on a <br />scheduled or charter flieht. <br /> Another area to be e~'plored.'accord- <br />lng to Munnich. is whether state govern- <br />ment can effectiveh' market Minnesota <br />airports. DTED hopes to work c]oseh' <br />with the Office of Aeronautics at <br />MnDOT and with local communities <br />to find bener ways lo market airports as <br />economic developmenl assets. <br /> <br /> <br />