Pilots Form N. Adams Airport Users Group’ In Bid To Get Control Of Harriman-And-West Classroom Space

The Berkshire Eagle reports the fight over city-owned classroom space at Harriman-and-West Airport has drawn former Airport Commission member Trevor Gilman and a group of local pilots into the fray.

Gilman has launched a GoFundMe page to solicit donations for a "North Adams Airport Users Group" that wants to use the space, formerly occupied by Teamflys, a scenic flight and flight instruction company that Gilman managed until it closed in 2017.

Decrying an airport community "under attack," Gilman and a group of pilots are looking to hire an attorney and work to form a registered nonprofit at a 501(c)(7) social club, with student pilot Sue Mead as its president.

It's an all-out effort to grab the small space before the city's Airport Commission leases it out to Bennington, Vt., based Taconic Aviation and its owner Alex Kelly.

The commission voted Tuesday to allow Kelly to use the building's classroom and office space temporarily until it makes a final decision in June regarding the tenant. As of Friday, the group had raised $4,400.