Preview: Special Report: Van Nuys Airport

Between 1992 and 2006, tenants at Van Nuys Airport were barred from building new facilities while planners mapped how to shape the airport’s future growth. Then, the nation’s economic downturn kept expansion plans grounded for another 10 years. But with those headwinds finally behind them, companies operating at one of the nation’s busiest general aviation airports are spreading their wings. The last two years and the next few years will be the most active construction period for Van Nuys Airport in more than a decade, airport experts say. Substantial projects have been completed by some of the biggest businesses and master leaseholders at the airport; others are underway and future projects are on the horizon. Together, the investment by airport businesses totals at least $43 million as of December 2015, with new proposals still to come. The tenants are not alone. By 2022, Van Nuys Airport will have completed or at least plans to finish $64 million of infrastructure improvements. While the activity demonstrates faith in the airport’s future, it entails competition among businesses and developers for the scarce land available near the runway. Read the full story in the April 3 issue of the San Fernando Valley Business Journal.