Politicians propose 2 new Ohio airports

In the middle of a statebudget crunch, a handful of Republican state legislators say that it’s time to talk about building two international airports that would require a $10 billion federal and business investment.

Some might call that far-fetched. State Rep. Paul Zeltwanger, R-Mason, calls it the “entrepreneurial spirit.”

Zeltwanger joined Rep. Jim Butler, R-Oakwood, to propose constructing an airport in southwestern Ohio off Interstate 71 and Route 35 — which runs west to Dayton and east to Washington Court House — and another hub north of Ravenna in Portage County in northeastern Ohio.

Their bill would create a seven-member panel to hire an executive director and get the decade-plus project started. This initial proposal

would require little state money beyond the executive director’s salary.

The legislators want to attract airlines to invest in airports that serve Cincinnati, Dayton and Columbus or Cleveland and Youngstown.

The goal is to attract direct international flights to Ohio. The Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, which is across the Ohio River in Hebron, Kentucky, is the only airport in Ohio, Kentucky or Indiana that has a daily nonstop flight outside North America: a flight to Paris.

Businesses are leaving Ohio because of its inadequate air transportation, Butler said Wednesday, citing Toyota’s decision to leave northern Kentucky for Plano, Texas.

But the project would cost between $10 billion and $15 billion. It would require significant investment from an airline willing to move hubs to Ohio, and it would require the federal government to foot part of the bill.

It’s not clear whether an airline would take that risk.

Butler said that President Donald Trump’s talk about investing in infrastructure is encouraging.

“I certainly hope this would be right up the president’s alley in terms of a big idea, something that could really dramatically change the infrastructure and the economy of Ohio,” Butler said.

And if the gamble pays off, Ohio would have two of the largest hubs in the country by population.

Butler insisted that this wouldn’t mean that airports in northern Kentucky, Dayton and Columbus would close; they would be buoyed by the business at the hubs, he said. He even proposed a rail system to transport people from the cities to the airport hubs.

The Columbus Regional Airport Authority did not comment on the legislators’ idea. Angie Tabor, spokeswoman for the authority, said officials would “pass” on the opportunity to react to the plan, which is expected to meet with resistance from Ohio’s existing major airports and business interests.

Will Ohioans drive to these hubs? In talks with business leaders, Gov. John Kasich previously floated the idea of building a commercial airport in Wilmington, but it didn’t go far.

“I’ve talked to people in Cincinnati about having an airport in Wilmington. They don’t want to drive to Wilmington,” Kasich told The Enquirer in February.

But Zeltwanger said that, on a smaller scale, no one thought that building Kings Island in Mason was ideal for a theme park. He’s willing to take a bit of a risk.

“It’s probably not advised from a political standpoint sometimes, but I think that’s what it takes,” Zeltwanger said.