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Home My WebLink About2023-04-13 Airport Commission Packet - Work SessionKENAI AIRPORT COMMISSION WORK SESSION – AIRPORT TERMINAL LANDSCAPING APRIL 13, 2023 – 6:00 P.M. KENAI CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS 210 FIDALGO AVE., KENAI, AK 99611 *Telephonic/Virtual Information Below* www.kenai.city 1.CALL TO ORDER 2.INTRODUCTION – Eland Conway, Airport Manager 3.PUBLIC COMMENT (Public comment limited to three (3) minutes per speaker; thirty (30)minutes aggregated) 4.COMMISSION DISCUSSION – Airport Terminal Landscaping 5.ADDITIONAL PUBLIC COMMENT 6.ADJOURNMENT Join Zoom Meetinghttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/82999533849 Meeting ID: 829 9953 3849 Password: 503180 OR Call: (253) 215-8782 or (301) 715-8592 Meeting ID: 829 9953 3849 Password: 503180 1 1643 West 10th Avenue, Anchorage, Alaska 99501 ehuggins@earthscapealaska.com MEMORANDUM Kenai Municipal Airport Meeting Minutes March 16, 2023 Landscape Design Meeting Attendees: Paul Minelga, Josh Daily, Glenda Feeken, Victoria Askin, Jacob Caldwell, Jim Lackey, Eland Conway By: M. Elise Huggins I. Introductions II. Project Overview – M. Elise Huggins, RLA, FASLA walked through a PowerPoint presentation that included the design process, alternative goal statements, site inventory (review of existing conditions at the airport as they relate to the proposed project), and ideas for how the airport could improve and create a space that visitors, residents and staff could use and enjoy. Elise handed out two sheets showing the airport property from the terminal to Willow Street and a smaller scale drawing focusing on the area in front of the terminal. Elise also asked attendees to review three alternative goal statements and prioritize alternative landscape elements and materials on a separate handout. Handouts were returned and summarized below. III. Comments – Summary of comments: Kenai is an oil/”redneck” town where oil and fishing are the key industries. 30% of those arriving in Kenai are oil field workers. Kenai area was originally settled by the Kenaitze (Kahtnut’ana Dena’ina) natives who continue to have a presence. Fish and the Kenai River are strong influences to Kenai. History of aviation is relevant. An underground sprinkler system is critical to reducing maintenance. Prior to the building renovations, there was a system that was maintained by Sprinkler Pro. Portions of the system still exist. Water pressure at the south end is good, however at the north, it is a one half the pressure. There is an existing shut-off valve. Wind is a significant issue at both front entries. Wind causes extreme buildup of snow (burying the front windows between entries) and ice creating safety issue that damage the operation of the entry doors. Prior to the renovations, a plexiglass screen buffered the entry from winds. A ridged structure is required, something with wood slats might work. The large mural, approximately 12’ in height was located on the building façade prior to renovations. Consider if that can and should be used in the landscape improvement project. The artist may have earth scape 2 EARTHSCAPE MEMORANDUM 2 restrictions on how the artwork can be displayed and should be contacted, she may now reside in Juneau. The sign is in good repair, however the drip edge may need to be fixed. Concrete is ideal in terms of low maintenance. The newest building in Kenai, the Health Clinic and school are good examples of architecture and how building appearances work nicely. The pet relief area is not working and needs improvement. Visitor’s deplane and open pet crates and go out through the front doors to allow their dogs to relieve themselves. Signage to the pet relief area is not as obvious as it could be. The Kenai airport is a place of transition, folks from the community go to the airport just prior to flight time and do not linger and use airport facilities. The café is not open long enough to attract visitors, however folks come from all over to buy donuts. The area in front of the building should not be a meeting place. Raised planters would be good, they should be vibrant in color and attractive. The landscape design needs to be crisp and clean, but not necessarily mowed lawn around trees. Bollards and signage at the crosswalk might work to stop people from parking in front of the crosswalk. The smoking hut needs better signage to encourage its use. Circulation and traffic flow do not work as well as they should, there are safety issues and driver behavior that has a negative effect on how the site is used. Consider moving the taxi stand closer to the pet relief area. Review the rental car location. The sidewalk/curb interface requires attention in winter as it collects ice and creates a hazard. The HCP ramp collects water which can be an issue. Trashcans are not ideal in location and type. They do not need to be bear proof. Lighting is adequate. Remove the existing low wood sign at departures, the new sign is all that is needed. Landscape elements: Boulders are nice but very expensive. Benches are not necessary, the existing benches do not function that well. The winds are so strong that visitors stay inside until they get picked up. Deciduous trees have leaves that drop and require more maintenance than evergreen trees. Vision for the airport: Status quo. Add flights and passengers. Currently there are three small carriers that move a volume of passengers. Need a 121 in the summer. Opportunities for growth should be explored outside the airport, only one sightseeing operation currently exists. A fixed Base Operator (FBO) is essential for KMA growth and would be a huge asset. How to facilitate growth and expansion? Tiedowns are hard due to local winds. KMA known for its great maintenance. Redesign floatplane basin. KMA has great instrument control, good training 3 EARTHSCAPE MEMORANDUM 3 airport. Need to consider landing fees for training. Consider a 13,500lbs. plane paying $10/landing? Anchorage does not have a good place for training. Willow Street and beyond a good place for an FBO? The gravel strip is pointless as there is no gas available. Pilots need parking space with vehicle access. Runway for practice needs to connect to airport to be of more benefit. FBO requires a big ramp, is there enough space? The need is for jet service and private aircraft maintenance. Seed capital of 50 million for hangar would allow 15-20 million for hangar facility. 85,000 to 100,000 leave come to Kenai to work or fish every year. The City of Kenai is investing in the comp plan and waterfront project which will bring more folks to Kenai – breweries and tourist attractions envisioned. A summary of scoring on landscape elements follows: New and existing benches were ranked as not very important, with one exception of existing benches in the top 3. Interpretive signs did not rank as important by most, one ranking of 4 was the highest. Raised planters were rated equally as important(2) and less important (2) At-grade plantings received mixed importance Decorative post rail barrier was ranked as important by four attendees and of the least importance by one. Re-use the existing art piece was ranked equally most important and least important Native plant use was fairly important. Trees were ranked important by all attendees. Shrubs had mixed rankings, generally in the middle of the range. Flowers were ranked slightly more important than shrubs. Lawn was ranked of equally low and high importance. Wood was favored material by 3 attendees and the least favored by 2 attendees. Concrete and metal were both mid-range ranked. Handouts showing the existing site are attached. 4 --- • • --- • • n ,,,·' /' I i i Landscap e Desi gn • Q • • • Kenai Municipal Airpo rt ( i I ~El I _,... • • -------------i (lgj) -~-~-~1~~- 1 I J ! I I I f ! 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