Parking fee at NCWV Airport meeting goals, airport director says

This article comes from our media partners at Connect Bridgeport.

BRIDGEPORT, W.Va (WDTV) - North Central West Virginia Airport began charging for parking last July and knew it would create an additional revenue stream despite receiving complaints.

In the months since, NCWV Airport Director Rick Rock says the complaints have subsided and the revenue stream is better than what was expected.

Since the Benedum Airport Authority signed off on the project, the airport has collected $181,945 in revenue.

“It’s exceeded our expectations,” Rock said prior to the start of last week’s Benedum Airport Authority meeting. “More importantly, it has achieved the goal of controlling the environment of our parking lot. At the same time, you look at the numbers and you can see they’re doing very well.”

The automated parking machine allows customers to pay for parking with cash or credit. The daily cost is $5 per day, and it is free if you are in the lot for less than an hour.

“Ever since parking machine was put in place, our numbers continue to be solid because the community supports us. The enplanements have continued to go up, particularly since we added the flight to Tampa-St. [Petersburg],” Rock said. “You have that and Orlando year-round and soon you’ll have Myrtle Beach and Destin, and you’ll definitely need to make sure the parking is as controlled as possible.”

Rock said while his office heard concerns when it was first discussed and initiated, he said that has not been the case for some time.

“Honestly, I can’t tell you the last time I’ve heard a complaint. I think people understand it’s cheap, and it was needed.”

Rock told the Authority he anticipates between $20,000 and $23,000 a month in revenue going forward. March has been the most revenue collected to date with $23,970 take in, while April nearly matched that total with $23,187.

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