The director of the Central Illinois Regional Airport said 2025 was a good year for the Bloomington facility. Carl Olson said the airport had about 325,000 passengers for the year, in the same range as the last couple of years.
“While our loads have been very strong, averaging load factors in the upper 80s to low 90s, consistently, the airlines are doing such a good job at restraining their capacity, the number of seats they introduce into our market, there isn't room for upward growth right now,” Olson in said an interview with WGLT.
He said the airport would like to have more, and he’s cautiously optimistic new service starting in the spring will allow CIRA to attract and retain new passengers. It might even “constrain” fare increases.
“It should. For example, with the addition of the new United Service, with four flights a day to Chicago, you're going to have 200 seats a day, more than we currently have on American, which means there's a lot of opportunity there for fare competition and schedule options for travelers,” said Olson.
A third daily flight on Delta starts next month, and United will start service to Chicago's O'Hare four times a day in May. It’s early to predict bookings for those, he said. Seasonal service to Phoenix/Mesa, Arizona started this week. Olson said Allegiant has been pleased with bookings on that route.
He cautioned against expecting a trend of steady or lower fares, noting airlines have become disciplined by limiting seats to serve their business models. That includes larger jets but fewer flights.
“It's helping them get stronger financially, and we think that's going to be a continuing trend,” said Olson.
Allegiant merger
Last month, Allegiant and Minneapolis-based Sun Country Airlines announced a $1.5 billion merger. That continues a trend toward industry consolidation. Olson thinks the two low-fare carriers complement each other.
“It's going to introduce new markets domestically and internationally, which opens more travel options for travelers. An interesting note is Sun Country’s Minneapolis hub. I’ll be very curious to see what Allegiant does with that and how they roll that into their business model,” said Olson.
Allegiant has not used a hub and spoke system before.
“Allegiant doesn't do connectivity. Allegiant flies point-to-point, day-of-week service,” said Olson.
He said it’s too early to tell whether the merger will benefit CIRA directly, or whether there could someday be a direct connection from Bloomington to Minneapolis.
Part of the merger includes Allegiant’s commitment to continue Sun Country’s cargo operation serving Amazon. CIRA has emphasized cargo service in recent years. In fact the airport is building a cargo road to separate passenger and truck traffic.
Olson said the merger may offer more scope for CIRA’s growth on that front.
“It's very much an opportunity,” he said. “We had initial conversations in the past with Prime about trying to expand into our airport facilities. I think this helps lead that, especially with our strong relationship with Allegiant overall.”
The companies expect to finalize the merger in the second half of the year. There’s always a digestion period for any new ownership development. Olson said CIRA won’t wait to make a new pitch for more business.
“We are actually scheduled to meet with Allegiant first of April in person,” said Olson. “The schedule and objectives for this consolidation ... will be one of the first things we talk about, and then we’ll look for opportunities to start introducing conversations about cargo.”
Airline profits
Airline industry analysts are predicting continued revenue and profit increases for carriers. Olson said Delta and United saw those gains first in large network areas, but the pattern is spreading to other airlines now.
That’s driven by higher average fares and more traffic, though some of the biggest growth comes from credit card operations and private lounge subscriptions.
The third factor has to do with people not being cheap. They're willing to pay for seat upgrades and lounges. Olson said that is true even for the typically leisure-centric, value-conscious passenger who uses CIRA.
“The major carriers are getting on board bundling, as opposed to buying a bag or a seat assignment, a la carte,” said Olson. “The consumer would say by bundling it, I'm buying something that I might not otherwise purchase. But ... it's not deterring them from booking and traveling.”
Infrastructure
Air cargo is the single largest employer at CIRA. FedEx built a sorting and distribution center in 2015. It handles packages that reach 20 counties in Central Illinois.
The planned extension of Airport Road to the south, leading directly to the cargo terminal, would allow FedEx to expand, said Olson.
The cargo road has languished for a couple years. A year ago, the incoming Trump administration held back a planning grant for the project. Recently, U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood announced a $1.5 million grant for the road. Completion, Olson said, is not less than two years away.
“The Airport Authority has completed the design work to reconfigure the Airport Road/East Empire intersection from a three-way to a four-way. That's ready to go out to bid, and we're working to finish the funding package for the total project. Ideally, that will be a mix of state and federal and airport infrastructure funds,” said Olson.
The Airport Authority also recently completed more than $30 million in capital reinvestment and is embarking on another roughly $39 million. Olson called it an exciting time.
“That's going to include a multi-phase rehabilitation of a runway. It's going to include the reconstruction of the short-term parking lot and the exit roadway. We're looking to replace the aging escalators in the terminal building, and upgrade passenger boarding bridges,” he said, adding CIRA employs local tradespeople to do the work.
Property taxes
The $1.85 million property tax levy for CIRA, approved in December went up less than $90,000 — less than 5%.
“The Airport Authority has lowered the tax rate every year for the last three or four years by double digits, while at the same time not creating a levy that uses the maximum EAV allowed in the community,” said Olson.
It is, however, a new tax for residents of McLean County who live outside of Bloomington Normal because of a change in the size of the authority's boundaries.
“Residents and businesses in Bloomington Normal experienced over a 30% reduction in their property taxes paid to the airport. Conversely, the new residents and businesses in rural McLean County have a new tax that, again, is approximately $55 for a $165,000 home,” said Olson.
The Airport Authority had the ability to levy up to $.075 for the corporate Levy. The board adopted a $.024 rate, less than a third of the maximum.
Olson said the tax rate will go up because of bonds the airport will issue later this month to fund parking lot rehabilitation.
“It is only a modest increase taxpayers will experience for the first couple years. It is a five-year issuance. We tend to keep our debt very short term ... so the authority could always be debt free if it chooses to be within five years. When the series 22 bonds mature in a couple years, the rate will be reduced,” said Olson.
Less than 30% of the airport annual operating revenue comes from property taxes. Most revenue comes from ticket fees.
Stability indicators
The airport recently passed its period FAA inspection with a perfect score. Olson said that has happened most years in the last decade.
“It highlights the skills and dedication of our airport staff, specifically our operations and maintenance and public safety employees who keep the airport up to FAA standards and keep the keep it safe and secure,” he said.
Moody’s ratings upgraded airport bonds from A1 to Aa3. The airport said that “reflects the stronger financial position on its operating levy.” Last year, CIRA transitioned to a countywide taxing authority from a district that included only Bloomington-Normal residents.
Shutdown cushion
Olson said CIRA should be able to withstand a potential government shutdown without undue stress.
“Our controllers continue to work," he said. "They are continuing to be paid because they work for a private firm, and all operations there continue unaffected. The biggest impact has been for TSA staff who are working without being paid.”
