Is RDU airport really required to get top dollar for Lake Crabtree County Park?
Raleigh-Durham International Airport says the Federal Aviation Administration requires that it now receive fair-market rent for park land that for decades it has leased to Wake County for $1 a year.
But Triangle Off-Road Cyclists, a group that has invested time and money building and maintaining trails at the park, says federal law provides an exception that would allow RDU to continue leasing the land for a nominal rate.
The future of Lake Crabtree County Park, the county’s busiest, could turn on which interpretation prevails.
Wake County has leased property from RDU for the park since 1985. The lease includes parts of Lake Crabtree and the northern shoreline where the county has developed parking lots, picnic shelters, playgrounds and docks for fishing and boating.
Last summer, the airport began seeking interest in developing 136 acres of the park closest to Interstate 40. That’s a forested area that contains the hiking and cycling trails that make Lake Crabtree the most visited county park.
RDU officials say they have no choice. They say they’ve consulted the FAA and been told that airports that receive federal grants must get fair market value for property they lease to outside businesses and organizations.
The FAA also requires airports to be as self-sustaining as possible, generating revenue where they can, said RDU spokeswoman Stephanie Hawco. With nearly $2.5 billion in construction projects planned or underway at RDU, generating income is particularly important now, Hawco said.
“As demand for air travel in the Triangle continues to grow, securing new revenue sources is essential to funding critical improvements at RDU, including a new runway, expansion of Terminal 2 and a widened roadway,” she wrote in an email. “Maximizing the value of airport land will help fund these enhancements, ultimately improving the travel experience and allowing RDU to attract new airlines and destinations.”
Does federal law provide an exception?
The FAA is aware of RDU’s plans for Lake Crabtree County Park and advised the airport that it must receive fair market value for the property, said agency spokeswoman Brittany Trotter.
But Triangle Off-road Cyclists or TORC says that under federal law any land-use restrictions by the FAA are subject to a “community use exception.” In a six-page letter to the airport’s governing board, attorney R. Robert El-Jaouhari cites a provision in the law governing airport development that would allow RDU to continue leasing the park to Wake County at a bargain rate.
“Under the community use exception, airports can lease property to local governments for recreational uses at below fair market value,” El-Jaouhari wrote, “and can even permanently restrict property to recreational or public-park uses without obtaining fair market value in return.”
El-Jaouhari said that exception is acknowledged in FAA policy cited by the airport.
But Hawco says the exception TORC refers to does not apply to the Lake Crabtree County Park land. That provision applies only to property purchased with federal grants, she notes, and RDU bought the Lake Crabtree property with local money.
Trotter with the FAA said even if the Lake Crabtree property qualified for the exception, there’s nothing in the law that requires an airport to lease property for a community use at less than market value.
Airport urged to save park trails
El-Jaouhari said RDU never responded to his letter. But he says he and TORC are still hopeful the airport, county and park supporters can find some way to preserve Lake Crabtree County Park within FAA policy and federal law.
“While there can be various readings of statutes, regulations, and policy documents, that variety can still be negotiated when stakeholders get together to seek common ground,” El-Jaouhari wrote in an email.
Fans of the park have urged RDU to preserve the trails and find ways to generate revenue from park visitors, perhaps by developing an outdoor center there or on nearby airport property.
They’ve asked the airport to reconsider a proposal made by cyclists and friends of nearby Umstead State Park several years ago. The RDU Forest Village concept calls for RDU to lease land north of I-40 for restaurants and other businesses to serve hikers and cyclists using Lake Crabtree County Park and other forested airport land.
Former Morrisville Mayor Mark Stohlman was one of hundreds who turned out at a public hearing this winter to plead with the airport to save the park.
“You have an asset that is unique, that you can turn into something glorious,” Stohlman told the Airport Authority board. “Please do not pave it over. Take what you have and enhance it.”
NC Reality Check is an N&O series holding those in power accountable and shining a light on public issues that affect the Triangle or North Carolina. Have a suggestion for a future story? Email realitycheck@newsobserver.com
