213 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 10, ISSUE 10 DECATUR AIRPORT “Some great things are happening to better reduce our footprint,” Wright observes. Further, with all that space, the airport is more than capable of taking on more business and expanding yet again with ever-widening boundaries. Plenty of room for that, says Wright. East of the airport is farmland, so constriction is not an issue. Plus, opportunities also abound for warehousing. The Wright stuff Wright also talked about how his professional career well and truly took flight. He reveals that he began at the airport back in 2004. He loves his job. You might say that it keeps him grounded. “I started here as a firefighter for the airport and worked my way up through the organization,” he informs, “to where I was the operations manager.” Nine years ago, he became the director. He loves serving Decatur in this capacity. “We’re a strong community,” he declares, extolling a city full of kind people who “really help each other out. Being here for almost 20 years at the airport, I’ve seen growth. Never once did I think that we would be dealing with a pandemic and watch aviation pretty much be ground to a stop. Still, it’s been fascinating to see aviation return after COVID. “It’s the big, little airport,” he jokingly adds of the facility. “We’re a big airport, but we still keep the hometown values. We enjoy being part of the community, both locally here in Decatur, and then also part of the aviation community. It’s my staff, and it’s the people that use aviation that motivate me. I’m proud of the airport. I’m proud of the history and the tradition that has taken place over the years here at the airport.” What are Wright’s goals for the Decatur
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