Charlotte City Council gets its first public presentation Monday on a proposed new lease between Charlotte Douglas International Airport and its five signatory airlines: American, Delta, Frontier, Southwest and United. The airport says the agreement would launch its next round of construction. Its cost, its length and what the airlines would pay under it have not been made public.
Council will not vote Monday. The airport says a review period will follow before council considers the agreement at a later meeting, but it has not said how long that period will be. In August, an airport worker asked council to give the public 45 days.
The presentation is set for the council's 5 p.m. session in Room 267 of the Government Center, ahead of its 6:30 p.m. business meeting, with 20 minutes for the presentation and 55 for discussion, according to the agenda. The city will stream it live.
What the lease does
The Airline Use and Lease Agreement governs the business relationship between the airport and its airlines, including property rights, operations, maintenance and repair duties and each side's financial commitments, according to the airport. The current agreement took effect July 1, 2016, and was set to expire June 30, 2026. The two sides extended it to keep negotiating; the airport's announcement does not say for how long.
The airport says the new agreement would launch a program it calls CLT Beyond, nearly a dozen projects that include an expanded Concourse C with more gates, a passenger tunnel to it from the main terminal, renovated international arrival areas and airfield work needed to open and operate a fourth parallel runway.
The airport says the terms are protected from public release, under a state law covering economic development records, until negotiations are complete.
What workers have asked for
Airport contract workers, including wheelchair attendants and escorts for children traveling alone, have spoken during the council's public comment period at least three times since May. One worker told council on May 26 that some co-workers make as little as $12.50 an hour.
At the same meeting, Elon University law professor Eric Fink backed the workers' request for a wage provision in the lease. He acknowledged concern that the state Wage and Hour Act could block one, and argued that the law covers a city's ordinary policymaking, not a lease of city-owned property. On Aug. 24, a worker asked for the 45-day public review. On Sept. 28, another worker asked council for better training and a fair process when workers are disciplined.
When council interviewed finalists for interim mayor in June, it asked each of them how they would keep the airport strong without leaving its workers behind.
The airport's Oct. 8 announcement does not mention wages. It says the airport "maintains its commitment to ongoing and expanded workforce programs and partnerships."