Cumberland County sets aside $400,000 to help recruit airline service at Fayetteville Regional Airport

The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners voted April 27 to set aside $400,000 from available general-fund capacity as an economic-incentive match to the city’s effort to attract additional airline service at Fayetteville Regional Airport. The allocation is meant to support route-development offers and leverage a pending DOT grant for regional transportation work.

Commissioner Pat el (said) the county’s commitment is intended as a conditional reserve, not an immediate expenditure: “This is a safe investment. It will take probably 2 to 3 years at this rate to utilize the money, and will create economic development benefits as well as quality of life.” She described the funds as a tool leaders can deploy if an airline identifies new routes and requires local matching or incentives.

Opponents cautioned against setting money aside before a carrier or route was identified. Commissioner Adams said he opposed the budget amendment that would earmark the dollars now: “I don’t see the need for a budget amendment because there’s no money that’s going to be expended until we have a public hearing and do all of that. There’s no reason to tie up $400,000.” He and other skeptics said those funds could be needed for county priorities during the upcoming budget season.

Commissioner Tyson urged care in using long‑reserved funds and asked that staff track prior projects where earmarked dollars were not spent. County Manager Greer confirmed staff identified available capacity and explained the set‑aside would sit unused unless a formal agreement and any required matching were requested later.

After discussion the board approved the motion to reserve the money for the airport incentive; staff said any actual disbursement would require a separate approval and legal, pre‑audit and contractual steps.

What’s next: Staff will hold the funds in reserve and work with municipal partners on any future incentive agreements, which would return to the board for formal approval before money moves.