Business View Magazine | Volume 8, Issue 9

201 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 8, ISSUE 9 as a toll-access highway between Pittsburgh International Airport at Interstate 376 and U.S. Route 22 in northwestern Washington County. Travel time between the Pittsburgh International Airport and the City of Steubenville is now approximately 25 minutes. “That makes it a real option for companies that can have their corporate travelers fly into Jefferson Airpark and make the short commute to the city without having to deal with the congestion of Pittsburgh International,” says Thaxton. “In fact, during COVID, we saw a slow down for a couple of months and then we had an increase in corporate flights. One of the reasons, I suppose, is that by using our airport you could fly in, get in a car, and never have to enter the terminal or interact with too many other people. It was both a safer option and highlighted how easy it is to land here.” When it comes to the airport itself, Rene Pier first purchased the land on which the Jefferson County Airpark now sits in the early 1940s to conduct strip-mining operations. Around 1950, the coal began to run thin, and a slag-surfaced runway as well as two large hangars were built. This was the heyday of civil aviation in the area and there were around 50 planes based on the field. The airport was purchased privately by Dominic Teramana who owned it for five years in the early ‘80s before he sold it to the Board of Commissioners of Jefferson County, Ohio in 1985 for $225,000. It was not until the early ‘90s that an Airport Board of Management was formed, and development plans ensued for a new terminal, new hangars, refurbishing the WW II surplus buildings, and more. Today Jefferson County Airpark has a 5000-foot runway, modern terminal amenities including a 24-hour pilot lounge, washrooms and showers, as well as self-serve aviation and jet fuel during the night, and tanker trucks during the day. The Airpark generates over $11 million worth of revenue for the county, and JEFFERSON COUNTY A I RPARK