As Mayor John Street is preparing the city for the announcement of major budget cuts this month, his office has begun to explore alternate means of bringing in revenue.
One of those options could be the sale of the Philadelphia International Airport to the state government.
However, Street is not ready to relinquish control of the Philadelphia airport just yet, despite plans by Speaker of the House of Representatives John Perzel (R-Phila.) to continue to bring some of the city's assets under state control.
Perzel has been a big supporter of a state purchase of the airport and recently won a battle with Street over control of the Philadelphia Parking Authority -- the organization that regulates on-street parking in the city.
Street is set to make his budget announcement on March 18.
At a press conference last week, the mayor recognized that selling the airport is an option but has not yet endorsed the idea.
"He is supportive of regionalizing the airport," Street spokeswoman Christine Ottow said. "He's not in favor of simply a takeover plan for sheer patronage purposes ... just to give the Republicans jobs," she added.
If the state were to gain control of the airport, the city would likely receive monetary compensation but would lose control over the power to fill job vacancies.
However, Ottow said that there are no current plans to develop a proposal and that the airport will most likely stay under the control of the city.
"There really aren't any current plans in the works," Ottow said, noting that there has been talk of regionalizing the airport since Governor Ed Rendell was mayor in the 1990s but that there has never been any action taken.
Rendell spokeswoman Kate Philips said the governor has had no discussions with Street or Perzel.
Philips did say that the governor "is willing to look at any proposal" concerning the city but also acknowledged that a proposal "would have to have a significant upside for the city."
She also said that the proposal would have to include fair representation for the community members and those from outlying areas.
Ottow made it clear that Street brought up the idea last week -- before Perzel began openly discussing the idea.
The plan might not be beneficial for the city in any case, Ottow said, considering that the airport "is doing really well at this time."
Ottow recognized the expansion of the airport -- including a new parking garage -- and representation by new commercial airlines as contributing factors to the airport's positive growth.
