Aurora State Airport
Current 2022-2025 Master Plan Process
The Oregon Department of Aviation (ODAV) is undertaking four-year-long a master planning effort to determine the future of the Aurora State Airport over the next 20 years. ODAV assembled a Planning Advisory Committee (PAC) composed of two-thirds Airport interests and one-third of community members and others to advise the agency.
Suddenly without advance notice, the FAA tells the public on June 7 that three Alternatives 5, 6 and 7 that maintain basic layout of Airport accommodating majority of Airport users “Are Not Viable and Will Not Be Considered Further.” Only Airport expansion Alternatives 1, 2, 3 and 4 will be considered.
ODAV’s 6 of 7 Preliminary Alternatives for the new Draft Aurora State Airport Master Plan propose to:
Expand the Airport’s direct impact on neighboring communities with a longer runway for bigger airplanes, and taking private property. The Master Plan ignores significant problems with low-flying overflights and noise, increased traffic, sewage, pollution, climate change, farm impacts, underground fuel storage, uncertain firefighting capacity and earthquake-prone soils.- Extend the Airport runway by approximately 500 feet to 5,500 feet long to allow larger, heavier aircraft to land and take-off with more fuel. The main revenue source for Oregon Department of Aviation is tax on aviation fuel; so more fuel sales means more money for government agency, despite negative impacts to residents, farmers, environment and climate change.
- Ignore 9 years’ worth of actual Airport control tower flight operations data to estimate future Airport growth. Rather than use actual Airport operations data, the Draft Master Plan uses inflated population growth projection of Clackamas and Marion Counties to determine future Airport growth. Oregon Department of Aviation is using a dubious methodology that inexplicably equates population growth with increasing flights at Airport — a false correlation between general population growth of counties and Airport without passenger air service.
- Rather than use actual Airport flight operations data or the standard Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) “Oregon Federal Contract Tower Terminal Area Forecast (TAF) Model” that is consistent with the trends defined by FAA for similar Oregon airports with contract air traffic control towers, ODAV seeks to use a dubious methodology that inexplicably equates counties’ population growth with increasing operations at Airport.
- The FAA-approved ODAV Airport Operations Forecast is 50% greater than the standard FAA Oregon contract tower forecast. The “Marion and Clackamas County Combined Population Growth Model” projects annual operations to increase by 0.9% per year, whereas the “Oregon Federal Contract Tower TAF Model” estimates 0.6% annual growth rate.
- Deprive citizens of the right to appeal the FAA Airport Operations Forecast that calls for expansion. ODAV has stated that the Airport Operations Forecast is not appealable; by preventing public challenge, federal and state aviation agencies appear to do as they please without being answerable to citizens.
- FAA is now telling the public that a “No Action” Alternative is Not allowable and only Airport expansion can occur since Airport is violating too many air safety requirements. Without an apparent basis in law, federal agency now appears to have put the fix in for larger Airport and to disregard public feedback.
- FAA and Oregon Department of Aviation disregard Airport operations data that shows decrease over time in larger, heavier C-I and C-II aircraft, and that smaller, lighter B-II and smaller aircraft are the vast majority of Airport users. Government agencies appear to collude on backroom deals that provide wealthy developers with more tax-payer funded subsidies.
- Disregard that other nearby airports (Hillsboro, PDX, Salem and McMinnville) with over 5,000-foot runways are underutilized and would welcome additional based aircraft and operations.
Of the original draft set of seven “airside alternatives,” only Alternative 7 maintains most of the Aurora State Airport’s current layout and footprint:
Retains current runway length (5,003 feet) and existing B-II class of aircraft standards rather than planning for a longer, strengthened runway that accommodates larger, heavier C-I, C-II and larger class of aircraft.
Protects the important local agricultural economy: Keil Road, a key access for local farmers, is not impacted by Alternative 7. Additionally, by restraining Airport expansion, speculative real-estate pressures that increase farmland rental costs are reduced, and help to keep farming economical in Oregon’s bread-basket of French Prairie.
Reduces land-use conflicts: Existing Airport septic drain fields, wind cones, and weather equipment do not conflict with layout. Wilsonville-Hubbard Highway 551, Keil Road, Boones Ferry Road and nearby residential areas do not conflict with the Runway Protection Zone (RPZ). Alternatives 1-4 all propose Airport expansion that negatively impacts ag operations.
Increases safety by limiting runway access for pedestrians and vehicles and preventing over-weight/over-sized aircraft that can hold more fuel.
See Airside Alternative 7, Change to B-II, Shift Runway North, and Maintain Current Length
HOWEVER, Neither Alternative 7 nor any of the other alternatives in the draft Master Plan address any land-use, surface transportation, pollution and other issues of concern to area constituents:
Poor quality roads in the Airport area vicinity are unimproved county roads with no shoulders or sidewalks, narrow lanes and deep ditches – no improvements are proposed by the Master Plan.
Negative impacts to the farming-based agricultural economy due to Airport expansion and speculative real-estate deals near the Airport are not addressed.
No mitigation methods for low-flying overflights and loud aircraft noise that negatively impact homeowner real-estate values and area residents’ quality-of-life are presented in the Master Plan.
Pollution from fuel, sewage, stormwater and PFAS forever chemicals generated by Airport users is disregarded, as are negative impacts to salmon-bearing streams near Airport.
Impacts from increasing Climate Change greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions due to money-making Oregon Department of Aviation fuel sales at Aurora State Airport are disregarded.
Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) data shows that the Aurora State Airport is located in an area subject to major potential damage in a projected 9.0 Cascadia Subduction Zone Earthquake. Airport area soils are prone to shaking and liquefaction during major earthquake, resulting in runway broken-apart into many sections and unserviceable for a long period of time. Only helicopters, which don’t need a runway, will be able to operate for months or years after the Big One.
Aurora State Airport Master Plan Documents Produced To-Date
Aurora State Airport Master Plan website
New Revised Chapter 5 - Preliminary Alternatives Summary (06/7/2024)
- Eliminates 3 Alternatives (5,6,7) that maintain Airport’s basic configuration that serves 87.9% of all flights (B-II aircraft and smaller) and provides only 4 Alternatives (1,2,3,4) of which expand the Airport’s footprint with lengthened runway.
Chapter 5 - Preliminary Alternatives Summary (06/4/2024)
- Airside Alternatives – Proposed runway and Airport land-use changes
- Landside Alternatives – Proposed Airport layout changes
Chapter 4 - Draft Airport Facility Goals and Requirements (04/2024)
Chapter 4 - Draft Airport Facility Requirements with FAA comments and responses (04/2024)
UAO Forecast Approval - corrected (01/2024)
Appendix 1 | Glossary and List of Acronyms
Appendix 2 | Environmental Screening Report
Appendix 3 | Cultural Resource Review
Appendix 4 | Area Zoning Districts
Appendix 5 | Instrument Approach and Departure Procedures
Appendix 6 | Airport Pavement Assessments
Appendix 7 | Airport Activity Data
Appendix 8 | Discarded Forecast Models
Working Paper #1 Multi-Revisions History
Planning Advisory Committee (PAC) Membership List
Reference Documents
- Full Scope of Work
- Scope of Work - Review Presentation
- Schedule (02/2024)
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Prior 2010-2012 Master Plan Process
For the past decade, the Oregon Department of Aviation (ODAV) has been judged by Oregon courts to have violated state law on multiple occasions pertaining to the illegal, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)-funded Aurora State Airport Master Plan of 2011/2012. For over 10 years cities and conservationists have contended that the 2011/2012 Aurora State Airport Master Plan was invalid due to host of procedural errors and failure to comply with Oregon public-process and land-use laws.
The Portland State University Oregon Solutions’ Aurora State Airport Assessment Report commissioned by the Oregon Legislature in 2018 found a host of agency management troubles, improper influence, and poor public engagement and communications problems regarding ODAV’s operations and planning at the Aurora State Airport.
In June 2021, the Oregon Court of Appeals reversed and remanded a Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) decision that had dismissed an appeal of the master plan by Aurora, Wilsonville, 1000 Friends of Oregon and Friends of French Prairie. Despite Department of Justice advice, ODAV appealed the Court of Appeals ruling to the Supreme Court, and was promptly rejected.
The Court found that LUBA erred in excluding the purportedly adopted 2011/12 master plan from the record; in erroneously finding that the master plan did not propose airport development on Exclusive Farm Use (EFU) land; in erroneously finding that aviation development at the Aurora State Airport are considered rural uses for land-use purposes; and in finding that the runway extension was exempt from the statewide land use goals; among other rulings.
As summed-up by the Salem Statesman Journal on June 23, 2021: “Oregon’s aviation authority tried to circumnavigate the state’s land-use system in adopting a plan to extend the runway at Aurora State Airport, the state’s Court of Appeals determined.”
Unfortunately, the new $1 million FAA-funded 2022/23/24 Aurora State Airport Master Plan process is also poorly run with an apparent predetermined outcome favoring Airport expansion. An ODAV-appointed Public Advisory Committee (PAC) was packed primarily with airport expansionists interests. Prior questionable airport operations forecasts have also been shown to be greatly exaggerated, with on-site air traffic controllers reporting that 40%-45% of all operations are pilots training with “touch-and-go” landings and take-offs, each of which counts as two operations. Simultaneously, the total number of operations over the past two years has declined by 45%, further calling into question the validity of Aurora State Airport operations forecasts. As noted above, the new Operations Forecast does not use actual Airport data, but rather uses a questionable methodology of Clackamas and Marion counties projected population growth over 20 years to forecast the growth of future Airport operations that is 50% greater than the Oregon Federal Contract Tower TAF Model.
Supporting Documents
City handout flyer (2 MB) 
