Airport supporters meet with Cleveland mayor’s office

Bibb first called for closing the popular general aviation airport shortly after taking office in 2022. In October 2025, Bibb brought the issue to the forefront again when he and Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne sent a letter to U.S. Department of Transportation and FAA officials, along with Sens. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) and Jon Husted (R-Ohio) and Rep. Shontel Brown (D-Ohio), urging them to release the city from its grant obligations that require the airport to be kept open until the late 2030s.

Separately, the Center for Cleveland—a local nonprofit, bipartisan organization that advocates for the future of the city—sent a letter in November to those officials and local officials outlining dozens of concerns about closing the airport.

In December, AOPA Great Lakes Regional Manager Kyle Lewis met with the staffs of Moreno and Husted in Washington, D.C., to express concern about the push to close the airport.

In the January meeting, Lewis and the other LAPP representatives encouraged the mayor’s staff to request a study from the FAA to examine all potential uses for the 450-acre parcel and to allow for long-term leases on the airport site.

“We appreciate Mayor Bibb’s staff taking the time to hear our concerns,” said Lewis. “We’re encouraged by their commitment to continued dialogue about what the future of Burke Lakefront looks like.

“This doesn’t have to be all-or-nothing,” said Lewis. “We're not saying the airport has to stay open with its current footprint. We believe there may be room to find some middle ground that allows for portions of the airport property to be redeveloped without closing the airport.

“By not accepting federal grant dollars for infrastructure improvements and not allowing for long-term leases for airport businesses, the city has contributed significantly to some of the problems that have been discussed,” added Lewis. “Airport operators told the mayor’s staff they have millions to invest at the airport but will not do so unless they can reasonably expect a return on that investment.”

On January 13, the Cleveland City Council also announced a series of four hearings to “learn more about the administration’s proposed closure” of the airport. Each will focus on a different aspect of the closure and redevelopment:

• January 21: Expenses and Obstacles to Development.
• February 4: Budget Implications and the General Fund.
• April 1: The Regulatory Path to Closure.
• April 15: Market Absorption and Real-World Appeal.

“Our goal is to determine if closure is not just desirable, but practical and financially responsible,” said Councilman Charles Slife, who chairs the council’s Transportation and Mobility Committee, in a news release. “We cannot afford to close an airport for a redevelopment project that the market cannot sustain or the City cannot afford to maintain. Clevelanders deserve an open conversation about the timelines and costs associated with this vision.”

“We appreciate Councilman Slife taking an objective look at this proposal and whether it will benefit Cleveland taxpayers,” said Lewis. “Between the cost to remediate a site that is largely built on a landfill, the loss of a downtown airport that provides unique value for businesses and lifesaving emergency transportation, the regulatory complexity and timelines required to close an active airport, and the uncertainty surrounding whether redevelopment would justify those costs, we think it will become clear that closing Burke Lakefront is not in the city’s best interest.”