MidAmerica Airport to Get International Cargo

By Valerie Schremp Hahn, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Jun. 12–BELLEVILLE — An empty warehouse at the struggling MidAmerica St. Louis Airport in Mascoutah will soon see some new international travelers: flowers, fish and other goods from South America.

The St. Clair County Board voted Wednesday night to approve leasing the warehouse to a Miami-based venture that would fly perishable items in on cargo planes. The goods would then be stored in refrigerated units at the airport until they are shipped to retailers around the country.

The county would spend $2.79 million on refrigeration and specialized cargo equipment, plus associated fees, and the company, called Teqflor International Logistics LLC, would pay the county $365,000 a year in years two through 10 of the 20-year lease. After that, the rent would be based on fair market value.

St. Clair County also expects to get more than $200,000 in landing fees a year and 25 new jobs. The deal would generate $5 million in revenue for the county over 10 years, said County Board Chairman Mark Kern.

“Here we’re talking about a new industry for the region, one that’s going to grow,” he said. He said that in a post-911 world with a struggling airline industry, it only made sense to focus on something besides travel to bolster the struggling airport.

Allegiant Airlines is the only passenger service at MidAmerica, offering flights to Las Vegas and Orlando, Fla. The ticket counter is only open two hours a day, five days a week. Last year, the airport got its first international flight when a cargo plane loaded with seed corn flew in from Chile, but that was a one-time event.

A 50,000-square-foot, $7 million warehouse was completed at the airport three years ago, but it has stood vacant as county and airport officials turned their focus on the air freight business. Teqflor would lease about 35,000 square feet of that space.

Larry Taylor, of Aziotics, a company that studied the feasibility of such a venture for the county and the airport, says MidAmerica’s location is perfect. It is halfway between Latin America and Asia, and airports in larger metropolitan areas such as Los Angeles, New York and Chicago are congested and expensive, he said. “We’re fast, cheap, and central,” he said.

Teqflor International Logistics comprises Teqflor Inc., a logistics firm, and Mission Cargo, a cargo management company.

The lease begins July 15. It will take about two months to install the equipment needed to store the perishable items.

County Board member Kyle McCarter, R-Lebanon, criticized the venture, saying he doesn’t want the county to invest in the equipment if there is no assurance Teqflor can actually pay the lease. “I’m not going to gamble with taxpayers’ money on this,” he said.

Kern said that he felt the money was a good investment, and that once the airport was prepared to accept one cargo company the county would be prepared to entertain other deals.

vhahn@post-dispatch.com — 314-340-8228

—–

To see more of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.stltoday.com.

Copyright (c) 2008, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.