(Marin County) Novato’s Gnoss Field needs tweaks, but here to stay, grand jury says

May 27, 2014

By Janis Mara

Marin Independent Journal

Jury recommends changes to security, financial reporting

The county airport at Gnoss Field is well-managed, beloved by many, resented by some, could use some improvements and is not going away, says the Marin County Civil Grand Jury.

"We see no reason to close Gnoss. In fact, there is no option but to keep the airport," the grand jury said in a report released late last week. "The Federal Aviation Administration has spent millions of dollars supporting the airport, and the county ... is obligated to keep it in place."

The report was mostly positive. The grand jury did make minor recommendations mostly focused on security improvements. The report also recommended that the county improve accounting of its enterprise fund to make sure the airport's revenues and expenses are reported within that fund and not the general fund.

An airplane climbs past parked aircraft at Gnoss Field on Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2014, in Novato, Calif. Plans are to extend the runway 1,100 feet to the north. (IJ photo/Frankie Frost)

The 120-acre airport north of Novato is home base for 300 aircraft, most of them privately owned, and it hosts about 95,000 take-offs and landings per year. An ambitious $17 million plan to improve the airport by extending the runway 1,100 feet is currently under consideration, though the plans depend largely on federal funding.

The airport provides "the advantage of convenience, the ability for some businesses to handle travel needs, and a lot of fun for those who enjoy the world of flying" to those who use it, the report said. In a previous grand jury report, the number of people using the facility was defined as less than one-tenth of 1 percent of Marin's population.

The report suggested that Marin residents "visit your airport," and praised the facility's employees and manager for their knowledge and experience. The grand jury described the airport's physical condition as "adequate."

The airport has four security and safety issues, plus one financial problem, the report said. The airport has only one full-time employee, the manager, who works five days a week, and two part-time employees, the grand jury noted. It recommended increased staffing to provide seven-day-a-week, 24-hour coverage.

Second, the grand jury recommended improving the airport's fencing and its video surveillance system to improve security. The report did note that the Transportation Safety Administration has determined that the probability of a major incident at a general aviation airport like Gnoss is relatively low.

Parts of the report were tongue in cheek, particularly in regard to the fencing issue. "Although the Grand Jury members decided not to try to scale the fences ourselves, we believe that a person with reasonable agility and a desire to enter the airport could do so at virtually any spot along the periphery," the report said.

The grand jury also recommended keeping gates and door locked at all times, locking hangar doors in unattended areas, posting emergency numbers and ensuring easy access to phones in various locations.

Third, "We recognize that there is potential to use the airport in times of disaster, but failed to find any evidence that the airport is ... included in the county's emergency plans," the report noted.

Hence, the grand jury recommended that Department of Public Works staff complete an emergency response plan using the template provided by the Department of Homeland Security.

Fourth, the report noted that the runway will likely need repairs before the proposed 2018 date of a possible runway extension. It recommended that the county inspect the runway and make needed changes including resurfacing as necessary.

Noise is a concern of those living in neighborhoods near the airport, and 90 people signed a petition asking for a review of the noise from planes taking off and landing, the report said.

"The airport website shows altered landing and takeoff patterns to minimize over flights of the neighborhoods," the report said, adding that "several interviewees told the Grand Jury that the current airport manager speaks to each pilot reported to have flown over homes and provides directions to avoid doing so."

With noise in mind, the grand jury recommended that the county keep in touch regularly with residents of the Rush Creek and Bahia neighborhoods in the vicinity "to address noise complaints and efforts undertaken by the county to reduce incidents."

While the report had many recommendations, none seemed to reflect serious problems. Much of the report took an upbeat tone, with one section suggesting that residents "some Saturday or Sunday, load up the family and drive out to Gnoss Field to watch a few takeoffs and landings."

Dan Jensen, the airport's manager, said he had not yet had time to digest the report and had no comment, though "we'll definitely provide the grand jury with a response."