By Khalida Sarwari
A committee is meeting in San Jose this afternoon to discuss whether to incorporate “Silicon Valley” into the name of Mineta San Jose International Airport to increase its marketability to airlines.
The ad hoc Committee on Airport Competitiveness, formed by Mayor Chuck Reed in November, is comprised of Reed and City Council members Rose Herrera, Sam Liccardo and Nancy Pyle.
Herrera said the name change is just one idea that the committee will discuss, but that the focus is finding ways to showcase the many advantages the airport offers.
“We have one of the best on-time records, much more so than San Francisco. Great weather, a brand-new facility, Silicon Valley with all the great companies nearby,” Herrera said. “We simply need to get the message out to them that San Jose has a competitive advantage.”
Airport spokesman David Vossbrink said incorporating ‘Silicon Valley’ into the airport’s name could help make that connection more clear, especially to overseas airlines.
“When we’re talking to foreign carriers in Asia or Europe who are less familiar with the geography of California, they don’t understand that San Jose’s airport is Silicon Valley’s airport and that their airlines could have very robust business by moving here,” he said.
Vossbrink said the airport has been struggling because of the recession. It has lost 25 percent of its passengers since 2007 and has had to reduce staffing levels from 400 to 200 since 2008 to help balance its budget, he said.
The airport underwent a major renovation, including adding a new terminal, but the modernization effort has added to the airport’s cost of operations, Vossbrink said.
He said the committee is also considering a proposal to contract law enforcement at the airport, which could reduce costs by $10 million.
“These are tough decisions but we are a business,” he said. “A private-sector business would be doing the same thing that we’re doing.”
The meeting began at 1 p.m. in the airport’s Boeing Conference Room.