'diamonds' Are Forever For Wilkes-barre Runners

Angry Words Fly During W-b Crime Meeting 
Police Chief Cuts Meeting Short As Residents Complain Hazle Avenue Bars Are
Source Of Crime And Shootings In Rolling Mill Hill Section Of Town.

By JENNIFER LEARN-ANDES jandes@leader.net
 Thursday, November 23, 2000 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1A 





The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport continues to seek $363,000
in Luzerne County tax dollars, even though airport director Barry Centini
admits he doesn't need the money to operate. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The request infuriates Luzerne County minority Commissioner Stephen A.
Urban, who believes the facility should be giving to the county, not taking. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Urban said he recently discovered that Centini has budgeted $75,000 for two
new employee vehicles. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``That's a new car for Barry and someone else,'' Urban said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Six airport employees drive home airport vehicles, Urban said. They are
engineering director Al Brocavich, superintendent James Brunozzi, Centini,
superintendent Tony Giannone, assistant director Wy Gowell and safety
supervisor Joseph Refice. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Urban said he plans to push for information on how much the airport spends
on gas, maintenance and insurance for the vehicles and whether the airport
sets limits on fuel consumption. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``We went through this with the county years ago, and commissioners don't
have county cars, so why does Centini have a car when he should be using his
own personal vehicle like everyone else?'' Urban said. ``I use my own car to
go to work and travel around, and I don't get reimbursed for mileage.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Urban said federal law restricts which federal employees can take home
government vehicles. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Centini said the airport has provided vehicles to some workers for years;
he declined further comment on the vehicles. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Urban had hoped the airport would take back its monetary request because
Luzerne County is struggling to whittle down a more-than-$13 million deficit.
He pointed to a 1973 news article that described a master plan for growth that
said airport profits should exceed a quarter of a million dollars by 1995. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``As long as we're giving them a subsidy, there's no incentive to manage
over there,'' Urban said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Centini said the airport is meeting its bottom line, but he wants money
from Luzerne County as a security blanket. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``We don't know what could happen. Airlines could merge,'' Centini said.
``The subsidy is more of a protection against big peaks and valleys.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Centini is actually requesting $727,427 from Luzerne County, although he
promises to reimburse $363,713. He has sought an identical payment from
Lackawanna County, which shares control of the airport. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Centini said he will try to give back more of the county's money, but he
couldn't make any promises. He said he might opt to use the money for
development projects. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Criticism of airport spending angered Centini. He said a state study showed
the airport contributes $140 million to the local economy, and he doesn't
believe $363,000 is too much to expect from each county. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``If you consider population, that's like a buck a person to run a
multimillion facility,'' Centini said. ``I don't think we can be looked at for
blame as far as what's happening with the budgets in Luzerne and Lackawanna.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 For the most part, Urban is alone in his complaints. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Luzerne County Commissioner Tom Makowski, a member of the bi-county board
that oversees the airport, said he believes Centini is being fiscally
responsible. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Lackawanna County Commissioner Joseph Corcoran said he sees no problem with
the airport's request for funding. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``I don't look at it as subsidizing. I look at it as an investment every
year by both counties that contributes to the overall good of the region,''
Corcoran said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Claire Kelley, president of the Coalition of Luzerne County Taxpayers, said
she believes Centini, who earns $68,500 a year, should run the airport more
like a business. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``All we ask for here is common sense and consideration for taxpayers,''
Kelley said. ``There's people living on $10,000 a year around here.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Jennifer Learn-Andes, a Times Leader staff writer, can be reached at
831-7333. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Airport Still Eyes County Funding 
Luzerne County Commissioner Stephen A. Urban Says He Thinks The Airport Should
Be Providing Money To The County Instead.

Airport Still Eyes County Funding Luzerne County Commissioner Stephen A. Urban Says He Thinks The Airport Should Be Providing Money To The County Instead.