“Depends on who you ask, but I think most people are of the opinion that the airport is somewhat vital,” said Rick Hughes, controller with Scottsdale Aviation.

The airport’s value includes private corporate flights – “we have over 30 private aircraft on the field” – and is an arrow in the city’s quiver for attracting potential new companies to the community, and for services such as medical transports, Enbridge pipeline inspections, and Coast Guard operations, he said.

City council Monday approved a call for public input on whether to invest or divest in the airport, ahead of an expected decision Feb. 10.

“If you have questions, please get them ready,” Mayor Mike Bradley said.

“Because this is a big decision for the council and for the community.”

“Somebody’s not going to invest in the airport if you’re telling them: ‘We’re not quite sure how long it’s going to be open,” Hughes said.

Sarnia committing to subsidies and capital upgrades long-term would be costly but could make investors comfortable to open things such as restaurants or explore real estate developments, diversifying potential revenue sources, Provost said in the report.

There’s a shortage of pilots, grounds crew and other personnel in the industry, but that could change, along with other factors including potential provincial government intervention, she said in her report.

Divesting would save subsidy money, but might require paying back millions in government grants for terminal improvements, equipment, creating the airport master plan and other things, she said, noting there would be no guarantee whomever bought the airport would preserve it as an airport.

Neither path is easy, Provost said, estimating either would require up to $450,000 and a third-party consultant’s help. A city airport reserve has $420,000, she said.

Scottsdale has an agreement with the city to run the airport until June 2027.

The company has no intentions to terminate that agreement early, Hughes said.

“Our plan is to continue and we’re hoping that either a long-term decision is going to be made, or at least get us to the middle of 2027,” he said, before adding a two-year agreement would be “just dragging things along.”

Anyone wishing to comment can email Sarnia’s clerk’s office at by noon Feb. 7, city communications manager Steve Henschel said.

A series of public consultation meetings on the airport also have been held since 2020, Provost said, in her report.

The city retained consultant InterVistas Inc. to help assess the status of the aviation industry, she said. The cost was about $7,000.