NewHavenBIZ

8 n e w h a v e n B I Z | O c t o b e r 2 0 2 1 | n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m O n T h e R e c o r d | Q & A T he prospect of a full-service, bus- tling airport in New Haven has tantalized business leaders across the region for decades. Now airport manager Avports, led by CEO Jorge Roberts, is taking steps to make that dream a reality. Avports, which operates 10 airports nationwide, has proposed a $100 million revamp of Tweed New Haven Regional Airport, in concert with startup airline Avelo. Any upgrade to the sleepy facility has long been stymied by politically influential neighbors in New Haven's Morris Cove and Annex neighborhoods. Now Roberts, 45, and Tweed Execu- tive Director Sean Scanlon seem to have many New Haven officials on board and leaders across the region excited by the airport's potential as an economic driver and job creator. (It doesn't hurt that Scanlon's side hustle is as a state representative and co-chairman of the Legislature's Insurance and Real Estate Committee.) Roberts brings to the Tweed project a background both in airport manage- ment and finance, with experience in business development for the Carlyle Airport Group. Avports, a subsidiary of e Goldman Sachs Group, has pledged to operate Tweed for another 43 years and spend $70 million of its own capital on the transformation. Key to that expansion is the arrival of Avelo Airlines, scheduled to launch low-cost flights to Florida starting in November. Roberts recently talked with New Haven Biz about Avport's Tweed plans. Here's what he had to say: Let's visit Tweed New Haven Airport five years from now. What do you see? e vision is various: It's an airport that is set up to serve the demand from the market, the need of residents wanting access to more destinations. Also the business community will have access to business travel and routes that will feed into increased economic activity and create more jobs for the region and city. But also an airport that is poised to be both environmentally and financial- ly sustainable, areas that we under- stand are critical for the needs of the community. en a facility including an expanded runway that will enable carriers to satisfy that demand, operate safely and meet the needs of the com- munity. Can you tell me more about the timeline on Avport's plans for Tweed? is started well before last year. ere's been a lot of work by the stake- holders on resolving the legal ques- tions for the expansion of the runway. at was resolved, then we embarked on a master plan process that received a lot of input from the stakeholders, including the community. e next step is starting the envi- ronmental assessment process. at's going to take a year and allow the Fed- eral Aviation Administration (FAA) to really study the impacts of the new facilities and expanded service, and equally importantly to receive input from the community. Once that process stops, the FAA will issue a FONSI [Finding of No Significant Impact] rider, but also recommendations on mitigating any potential impacts. at will enable us and the authority to embark on construction and expand these facilities that are currently choking growth and the ability of the airport to serve the demand. at process of design and construc- tion will take two years. We hope to open the new facilities in early 2024. How did the deal with Avelo Airlines come about? ey're a new carrier in the new low-cost carrier segment. at's an emerging segment in the U.S., although it's been very well developed in Europe, which allows for more affordable fares. Avelo was looking for an East Coast base and they saw that Tweed New Haven was in one of the most under- served markets. With their accessible fares, they're able to satisfy the market and they felt that operationally they could start now. Obviously they're interested in an expanded runway to really allow them to grow. For Avelo, it's about volume. Lower fares, but volume to make it a viable operation. e way that we came together is that Avelo saw that we were embarking on a long-term vision and that matched very well with their goals. We're also looking to operate this very efficiently in a way that makes it attractive and viable for them, versus other airports in the surrounding areas Avports CEO Roberts leads charge to turn New Haven's Tweed into full-service airport By Liese Klein Jorge Roberts CEO Avports Education: Two degrees in business and economics, University of Washington; MBA, Harvard Business School Avports CEO Jorge Roberts speaks at a press conference announcing the launch of low-cost flights to Florida at New Haven's Tweed Airport. PHOTOS | COURTESY

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