Bob Hope Airport pumps $1.8B into economy

Bob Hope Airport had a total economic impact of $1.8 billion on the Los Angeles County economy during its fiscal year 2012-13 and supported 12,440 jobs throughout its supply chain, according to a study by the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp.

The total economic impact includes revenues from the airport itself, on-site activity of concessionaires and tenants and off-site spending by passengers and crew deplaning at the airport, according to the report, which airport officials commissioned for $29,000.

The airfield also generated $663 million in labor income, which includes not just airport employees, but every company in the airfield’s supply chain, including vendors and tenants, said Christine Cooper, vice president of economic and policy analysis for the county agency. The figure includes both wages and benefits.

“The airport is a local asset, so it’s helpful to think about its local contribution,” she said during a presentation about the report to the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority on Monday.

The airfield also paid $122 million in state and local taxes during fiscal 2012-13, Cooper said.

Included in taxes to the city of Burbank were approximately $2 million in parking taxes and an estimated $4.5 million in taxes on the assessed valuation of private and commercial aircraft, according to the report.

The last economic impact report conducted by the county agency was almost six years ago, said airport spokesman Victor Gill.

Another 730 jobs were generated by airport capital-project expenditures, including construction of a new $112 million transportation center, which is scheduled to open in June. During fiscal 2012-13, almost $55 million was spent on the project, Cooper said.

Also during that fiscal year, the airfield handled 3.9 million passengers, had 50,700 airline operations, spent a total of $67 million on capital improvements and had an estimated 1,890 on-site employees, according to the report.

Passengers and crew members also have an economic impact, resulting in an additional $451 million in local spending during fiscal 2012-13.

“The airport is a conduit for millions of passengers into the L.A. region,” Cooper said.

More than 2 million passengers deplaned at the airfield in fiscal 2012-13, almost half of whom were from outside Southern California, she added.

“Many were tourists or business visitors who incurred additional spending in the region on activities such as hotel stays, ground transportation, entertainment, restaurants, souvenirs,” she said, adding that, on average, 84 crew members stay overnight in the Burbank area every day.
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Follow Mark Kellam on Twitter: @LAMarkKellam.

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