Residents speak against commercial flights at Briscoe

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By David Wickert

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Opponents of commercial passenger fights at Briscoe Fields kept up pressure on the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners Tuesday night.

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Proposals from private companies interested in running Briscoe Field, the Gwinnett County airport, are due Feb. 8. Briscoe Field currently serves corporate jets and other small aircraft, but one company has expressed interest in adding commercial flights.

Phil Skinner/ AJC, pskinner@ajc.com Proposals from private companies interested in running Briscoe Field, the Gwinnett County airport, are due Feb. 8. Briscoe Field currently serves corporate jets and other small aircraft, but one company has expressed interest in adding commercial flights.

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Though the fate of the county airport near Lawrenceville was not on the agenda, about 200 opponents attended Tuesday’s commission meeting. Some testified against commercial flights during the public comment period.

David Mellard, president of the Lawrenceville Neighborhood Alliance, urged commissioners to protect the quality of life of nearby communities.

“The people around Lawrenceville, Grayson, Dacula and Lilburn, we are being sent under the bus for this airport expansion,” Mellard said.

Gwinnett recently solicited proposals from private companies interested in running Briscoe Field as it is: a small general aviation airport serving small private aircraft and corporate jets. However, the county will allow companies to share their long-term vision for the airport. One company – New York-based Propeller Investments – wants to launch commercial flights.

Supporters say such flights would create jobs and provide an alternative to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Opponents say commercial flights would mean more noise and declining property values near the airport.

Both sides have inundated commissioners with e-mails and petitions pressing their case. Most recently, opponents of commercial flights have gathered nearly 1,200 signatures on an online petition that asks commissioners to rule out scheduled passenger flights at Briscoe.

Proposals from private companies are due Feb. 8.