There is potential for new air service in the city of Yorkton. Perimeter Air came to the city to explore the possibility of establishing a regular service.
Ron Evinou with the Yorkton Airport Authority says that they have been preparing for the last four or five years to bring regular air service to the city. The visit with Perimeter is the culmination of the work to get that service for the city.
The benefits of regular service are wide-ranging, Evinou believes. For business people and regular travellers, he says it'll be a much safer way to travel, especially in the winter, as he says the drive out of town is often the most dangerous part of the journey. For the airport itself, the biggest benefit is the potential to qualify for increased funding.
"Looking down the road, the reason that it's important for an airport authority is something called ACAP funding, it's federal funding for airports. If we can have five hundred people take off and five hundred people land at our airport every year for the next three years, we will qualify to apply for federal funding. As an example of how important that is, the small town of Swan River was able to get $2.8 million some years ago, we're looking for up to twenty million over the useful life of this airport, so you can see how federal funding would be so important," he details.
The increase in hotel construction is one of the reasons why an air service to Yorkton is an attractive possibility, Evinou believes, since it indicates people want to come here, which in turn shows potential for air travel in the area.
Perimeter Air CEO Mark Wehrle says the airline used to operate a regular service to Yorkton in the 1970s, and it is considering it again because both the city and the airline have grown in the years since.
"We're looking for new opportunities. We're growing, just as your community is, so we're here to explore some of the possibilities," he states.
The early meetings between Perimeter and the city have gone well, Wehrle says, and if they decide to establish the service flights it could begin within the month. Wehrle says that one of the things that needs to be decided is the level of service that Yorkton needs, and to determine the demand for regular air travel in the city.
The two cities have plenty to offer each other, Wehrle believes, and he is optimistic that this will be a win-win for both communities. A decision is expected in the next few weeks.
