Enterprise Outbid at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport

[FailingEnterpriseAdmin]

Here's an article from Auto Rental News:

November 28, 2006

Rental car companies are offering millions of dollars for operating rights at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport, The Citizen’s Voice (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.) reports.

National Car Rental/Alamo submitted a bid of $921,340; Avis bid $1.3 million; Budget Car Rental, $1.2 million; Hertz, $1.3 million, and Enterprise Rent-A-Car, $757,573. All except Enterprise now operate at the airport.

Assistant Airport Director Michael W. Conner reported the 19,411 passengers who flew out of the airport last month was 4.6 percent more than the 18,562 in October 2005. Overall numbers for the year still lag behind last year by 3.4 percent, according to The Citizen’s Voice (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.).

But Conner also reported general aviation operations (takeoffs and landings) increased 52 percent with 2,626 operations last month, compared to 1,722 in October 2005, and aviation revenues increased as well.

Airport operations showed a net income of $81,327 last month, compared to $210,057 in October 2005, Conner said. That’s a drop of 61 percent. Year-to-date income is $437,803, or 27 percent less than $600,087 for the first 10 months of last year.

Hey ?????, what do you think of this level of customer service? Long term, this tax will screw more customers than an ERAC waiver dispute will ever come near. Nice to see Hertz and Avis agreeing with "Taxation without Representation."

http://www.fleet-central.com/arn/t_i...&storyID=25843



Seattle Rental Car Companies Support Tax to Fund New Arena

November 13, 2006

A representative for Hertz and Avis says the two rental car companies are willing to submit to a permanent 1 percent rental car tax to help fund a new arena for the Seattle SuperSonics, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports.

The 1 percent rental car tax was levied in 1992 to help pay off debt incurred by renovations on another sports stadium, the Kingdome, which was demolished in 2000. The tax generates an estimated $2 million annually.

The Sonics’ new ownership has threatened to move the team to Oklahoma City, where the ownership is based, if the team’s KeyArena is not replaced with a state-of-the-art building. The team’s lease at KeyArena ends in 2010.

The city of Seattle, however, recently passed Initiative 91, which stops the funding of sports and entertainment arenas with the use of tax-based public subsidies.

The Sonics are currently in preliminary talks with various industries, including the car rental and restaurant industries, to put together an arena-funding package for consideration by the state Legislature, according to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

[FailingEnterpriseAdmin]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Hey ?????, what do you think of this level of customer service? Long term, this tax will screw more customers than an ERAC waiver dispute will ever come near. Nice to see Hertz and Avis agreeing with "Taxation without Representation."

http://www.fleet-central.com/arn/t_i...&storyID=25843



Seattle Rental Car Companies Support Tax to Fund New Arena

November 13, 2006

A representative for Hertz and Avis says the two rental car companies are willing to submit to a permanent 1 percent rental car tax to help fund a new arena for the Seattle SuperSonics, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports.

The 1 percent rental car tax was levied in 1992 to help pay off debt incurred by renovations on another sports stadium, the Kingdome, which was demolished in 2000. The tax generates an estimated $2 million annually.

The Sonics’ new ownership has threatened to move the team to Oklahoma City, where the ownership is based, if the team’s KeyArena is not replaced with a state-of-the-art building. The team’s lease at KeyArena ends in 2010.

The city of Seattle, however, recently passed Initiative 91, which stops the funding of sports and entertainment arenas with the use of tax-based public subsidies.

The Sonics are currently in preliminary talks with various industries, including the car rental and restaurant industries, to put together an arena-funding package for consideration by the state Legislature, according to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

The whole appeal of all these hotel and rental car taxes is that the people who have to pay it (in the short term) aren't eligible to vote, so it seems like painless free revenue for local government. I agree it's a scam.

Originally Posted by FailingEnterpriseAdmin

Here's an article from Auto Rental News:

November 28, 2006

Rental car companies are offering millions of dollars for operating rights at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport, The Citizen’s Voice (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.) reports.

National Car Rental/Alamo submitted a bid of $921,340; Avis bid $1.3 million; Budget Car Rental, $1.2 million; Hertz, $1.3 million, and Enterprise Rent-A-Car, $757,573. All except Enterprise now operate at the airport.

Assistant Airport Director Michael W. Conner reported the 19,411 passengers who flew out of the airport last month was 4.6 percent more than the 18,562 in October 2005. Overall numbers for the year still lag behind last year by 3.4 percent, according to The Citizen’s Voice (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.).

But Conner also reported general aviation operations (takeoffs and landings) increased 52 percent with 2,626 operations last month, compared to 1,722 in October 2005, and aviation revenues increased as well.

Airport operations showed a net income of $81,327 last month, compared to $210,057 in October 2005, Conner said. That’s a drop of 61 percent. Year-to-date income is $437,803, or 27 percent less than $600,087 for the first 10 months of last year.

They have an off site airport location that has pickup from the airport. They have a compact for 35 a day while hertz has the same car for 66 a day. I think they'll be fine.