Background and Bio on KCAThe airport Manager, Fred A. Leistiko, is a retired Army Colonel from the Ohio Army
National Guard. Mr. Lelstiko was the commander of the AASF #1 at the Akron -Canton Airport in
North Canton, Ohio. He retired in 1991 and moved back to Montana, his home State, in 1997. He
served a four year term on the Kalispell City Council (1999 — 2002) where he made the airport one
of his top priorities because it was neglected, without management, and had been shuffled
between several City Departments with no attention as to its future. The airport was part of the
General Fund and was costing the City approximately $30,000 to keep it open. In 2004 the City
hired Mr. Leistiko as a consultant to study the airport situation and give the Council a
recommendation. The results of the study were to hire a manager; make the airport an Enterprise
Fund; and seek FAA support for expansion and upgrade. The Council approved the funding of an
Airport Master Plan in 1999 and approved the Plan to expand the airport at its current location.
Mr. Leistiko became the first Airport Manager in July, 2005 as a Department under the Cit
Manager. At the same time the Airport was celebrating its 75 th year in the same location. By
November, 2005 the FAA had approved placing the Kalispell City Airport on the NIPAS list for
funding using Airport Improvement Program funds. A new Airport Layout Plan was approved by
the City Council and the FAA. An Environmental Assessment was completed and approved by thE
FAA. The FAA would provide 95% of the funding for a new runway, taxiway, terminal, fueling
operations, parking ramp, fencing, lighting, etc. There was only one stipulation, the two 325' rad�
towers located 1.8 miles off the south end of the proposed new runway had to be mitigated by tt
City. The towers were in FAA protected airspace and violated State and local laws. However, thE
1W I radio st-tition is a radical -, anbi-e-overnment �ndividual who bo Wil
that it would need to be relocated to accommodate the airport expansion. He paid $550,000 for
the radio station weeks after the ink was dry on the Master Plan that said the radio station tower
would have to be moved. He immediately requested the City pay him $2 Million for the station.
After gathering up the landowners, the City, the FAA, and the State of Montana to fund the $2
Million, the radio station owner said that it was too easy and demanded $6 Million. The City
decided to wait him out and see if he could make a go of it as a station operator.
The station owner defaulted on the original note which was $1.2 Million as of April, 2009.
He also lost a law suit for defaming some local businessmen in the amount of $3.8 Million. He
declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March, 2009. At his 341 hearing he stated that the radio station
never made any money and his reorganization was that the City of Kalispell was going to pay him
$6 Million for his station. The U.S. Attorney figured that was not true and moved to have the
station switched to Chapter 7, liquidation. At the same hearing the owner stated, under oath, that
he had not paid Federal or State taxes since 1988 and owed $31,000 in County taxes. The U.S.
Attorney for the IRS and the State Attorney General filed motions to have him liquidated. Both
creditors filed motions to have him liquidated. The hearing for the Motion to Liquidate is
scheduled for July 16 1h in Missoula, Montana at the Federal Court.
The airport manager also manages the Airport Tax Increment District that was set up
around the airport to assist in airport development on and off the airport. TIF funds can also be
used to mitigate the radio towers. In 2005 the City approved the bonding of $2 Million in
immediate improvements on the airport, with the bond payments being made by the TIF until the
FAA reimbursed the airport for the project. The improvements were done to coincide with the
future expansion. Being a construction project, reimbursement will come after the land acquisition
phase of the project. The City has already completed some land acquisitions and will be
reimbursed for those purchases as soon as the towers are mitigated. The FAA has programmed
$1.5 Million a year for our project. The first couple of years will go to land acquisitions and then
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capabilities.
The Kalispell City Airport is one of the few departments of the City that is in the black and it
has access to millions in Federal funds as soon as the radio towers are taken care of. The CIP for
t