JEFFERSON CITY — A proposal by a south ºüÀêÊÓƵ County Republican could prompt debate on whether a new “regionally focused†entity should take over management of city-owned ºüÀêÊÓƵ Lambert International Airport.
Rep. Jim Murphy said the airport, one of the metro area’s most important assets, is currently controlled by the city of ºüÀêÊÓƵ. He said he wants to give more voice to communities outside the city.
Currently, 10 of the 17 members of the commission that oversees the airport are city representatives.
Six are mayoral appointees. The four others are the airport director, city comptroller, president of the Board of Aldermen and chair of the Board of Aldermen’s transportation committee.
In addition, ºüÀêÊÓƵ County’s director of aviation and four appointees of the County Executive serve on the commission, along with one member from St. Charles County and one member from St. Clair County.
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The Board of Aldermen agreed to add the five ºüÀêÊÓƵ County representatives in 1989. They added the St. Charles County and St. Clair County seats in 1999.
But Murphy says that still leaves the city in charge.
Murphy’s proposal, a nonbinding resolution, would ask Missouri residents to contact their state legislators and ask them to place airport management responsibilities under a “regionally focused management entity.â€
“We’re just asking for a regional authority to run it because it’s a regional airport,†Murphy said Monday. “The city will maintain all the profits that come out of it, but we need to grow the airport, so ... we think this is a better way of doing it.â€
Murphy, asked about issues he sees with current airport management, pointed to losing “all our major hubs†and that there aren’t “enough direct flights.†He said businesses have left, “based just on that.â€
The now-defunct Trans World Airlines had been based in ºüÀêÊÓƵ and had operated a hub at the airport. But that role ended after American Airlines took over the bankrupt TWA in 2003.
“The more communities that are involved, the more businesses that are involved throughout all those communities, puts more and more pressure on the airlines,†Murphy said. “The bigger the group involved the better the chances of improving the airport.â€
Rhonda Hamm-Niebruegge, the current airport director, declined to comment on Murphy’s proposal on Monday.
Nick Dunne, a spokesman for Mayor Tishaura O. Jones, called it “vague and inaccurate†— and unneeded, given Lambert’s growth.
“For 30 years, ºüÀêÊÓƵ Lambert International Airport has far surpassed the passenger growth rates of other medium-sized hubs, including Raleigh-Durham, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati — even after the pandemic,†Dunne said in a statement. “With a new terminal creating upwards of $5 billion in new revenue and an estimated 30,000 new jobs by 2032, and with the recent introduction of several direct international flight paths, STL already has a ‘regionally focused management entity’ without the need for a vague and inaccurate resolution.â€
Murphy introduced his measure Friday. House Speaker Dean Plocher, R-Des Peres, had not referred it to a committee as of Monday.
Murphy’s resolution asks residents to encourage lawmakers to change management from the “city of ºüÀêÊÓƵ, ºüÀêÊÓƵ County, and the Airport Commission†to the regional board.
Murphy also referenced the ºüÀêÊÓƵ airport recently missing out on part of the latest round of federal money for terminal upgrades.
In Missouri, the Springfield and Kirksville airports both landed federal grants. But while other mid- to large-sized airports were able to pull down funds, ºüÀêÊÓƵ’ airport was left off the list of winners by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Murphy said the “malfeasance†of city governance and the “craziness that’s going on†isn’t helping the region. “We need to make some changes,†Murphy said.
But even as the Republican lawmaker criticized current airport leadership, the airport reported a 9% increase in passengers going through the ºüÀêÊÓƵ airport last year, from 13.7 million in 2022 to 14.9 million last year.
The increase brought the airport closer to pre-pandemic traffic levels. In 2019, the last full year before the pandemic, there were almost 15.9 million passengers.
The airport has also offered nonstop service to continental Europe since 2022 through Lufthansa, the first direct service to Europe since ºüÀêÊÓƵ lost its flight to London in 2003.
The leader of the group Greater ºüÀêÊÓƵ, Inc., said in November “we will aggressively pursue†state grant money to lure additional international service.
Airport and business leaders want to carry out nearly $3 billion in airport upgrades, and airlines still must agree on the plan.
The legislation is Hous