Propeller Airports Makes Sole Bid on Briscoe Field

There's only one choice for Gwinnett County Commissioners to make if Briscoe Field is to be privatized: Propeller Airports Briscoe Field, Inc.

That group was the only one to respond to the county's Request For Proposals by Wednesday's deadline. The RFP was issued in December after much discussion by commissioners and public discourse that still continues.

No details of the proposal are available; it is being evaluated, according to county spokesperson Joe Sorenson. There also is no known timetable for making a decision.

However, before the RFP process began, Propeller had said that it wanted to begin commercial passenger flights at the county-owned airport.

District 1 Commissioner Shirley Lasseter, whose district includes Suwanee, thinks a private operator could improve the airport's economic performance. "I don't believe Gwinnett County needs to be running an airport," she said.

Proponents of privatization -- which would not necessarily mean commercial flights -- see it as a way to improve the airport's economic performance and to reinvigorate the county's economy. Most of the vocal opposition comes from residents who live near the airport and are concerned about flight noise and declining property values.