by Larry Chowning –
A petition signed by over 40 people living in the Topping area is in opposition to turning Hummel Field at Topping over to a regional airport authority. The petition was presented to the Middlesex County Board of Supervisors at its November 6 board meeting.
Susan Jones of Eubank Landing Road in Topping presented the petition, which stated, “We strongly object to the formation of an airport authority for Hummel Field. Forming such an entity would be a harmful move by creating a governing group having significant powers without accountability to Middlesex County citizens.”
Hummel Field is owned by Middlesex County and regulated through the Middlesex County Airport Committee and Middlesex Board of Supervisors with committee members appointed by the supervisors.
“Creating an airport authority would change the current airport committee structure by greatly elevating the decision-making power of the new entity and removing direct control by the publicly-elected Middlesex County Board of Supervisors, which currently provides for final decision-making control and accountability,” states the petition. “If it were a regional airport authority, it would include representatives from one or more other counties.
“Local persons in Middlesex with concerns would have no voice and recourse through their local elected officials on actions taken by a [regional] authority,” it stated.
“Furthermore, representatives from one or more counties in a regional airport authority should not have influence over matters in our local area of our county that we would have to live with and suffer the consequences, while their county enjoys the benefits with none of the negative impacts to its own citizens,” states the petition.
Middlesex County officials have been in discussion with Lancaster and Northumberland counties about creating a regional airport at Hummel Field. Of late, Northumberland has decided not to join in on talks. At the Middlesex board meeting on November 6, county administrator Matt Walker reported that a meeting with Lancaster County officials on the topic was postponed for this month.
The petition also states there is “current lack of representation on the county airport committee of the homeowner community that is adversely impacted by airport operation and management decisions.
“The current committee membership appears to be entirely composed of advocates for the current airport and for an expanded airport,” the petition states. “Many of the current members personally benefit from the airport. There appears to be no representation of home and property owners near the airport that may be adversely impacted by current and future airport operations.”
The petition suggested the board of supervisors “should immediately install at least two persons on the airport committee to represent the surrounding community that currently experiences adverse impact.”
Hummel Field was founded as an official Middlesex County airport in January 1970 when Fred E. Hummel and his wife Maria Jones Hummel gave 85 acres of land to the county and specified it be utilized as a public airport.
Lawsuit
The petition has come on the heels of a lawsuit against a pilot and members of the 2017 Middlesex County Board of Supervisors. The suit was filed by James M. Johnston of Eubank Landing Road on October 7 in Middlesex County Circuit Court. The suit involves an airplane taking off from Hummel Field and crashing into Johnston’s home on October 7, 2017, causing considerable damage.
