Wichita Mayor Bob Knight recently announced the creation of a Fair Fare$ Inc. Board to provide oversight to the Fair Fare$ program. The Fair Fare$ Program is a community-wide effort to reshape air service and obtain lower airfares. The 11-member Board is comprised of individuals from both the public and private sectors.
The Fair Fare$ Inc. Board members are:
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Dion Avello, Vice Chairman of the Board – a member of the Airport Advisory Board and the Derby City Council;
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Troy Carlson, Chairman of the Board – Carlson is the vice president and managing director for the Wichita Right Management Consultants' office. Carlson is also the founder of the Business Investment Group;
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Chris Cherches – City Manager, a member of the Air Service Task Force and the Wichita Airport Advisory Board;
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Jill Docking – a investment broker with A.G. Edwards and Sons and currently Vice President of Investments, and a member of the Air Service Task Force;
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David Elkouri – member and co-managing director for Hinkle Elkouri Law Firm, L.L.C. Elkouri serves as a member of the Air Service Task Force;
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Carl Harris – Chairman of Regional Economic Area Partnership, Newton City/County Airport Commissioner, a member of the Wichita Airport Advisory Board, and a Newton City Council member; and
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Dave Wood, President of the Board – Director of Economic Development for The Greater Wichita Area Chamber of Commerce.
These individuals were chosen to serve on the Board because of the amount of service and participation they contributed and continue to contribute to bringing a low-cost air carrier to Wichita's Mid-Continent Airport. The Board elected Carlson as Chairman.
"These members of our community have been an important part of the success of obtaining our low fare service and I sincerely appreciate the time they have given to this effort," said Mayor Bob Knight.
Ex-officio members appointed to the Fair Fare$ Inc. Board include:
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Allen Bell – Director of Economic Development, City of Wichita;
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Steve Flesher, Secretary and Treasurer for the Board – Flesher is the Director of the City's Air Service Development;
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Mayor Bob Knight; and
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Ray Trail – Director of Finance, City of Wichita
The Fair Fare$, Inc. Board was established to oversee the process of converting pledges into active accounts via the Fair Fare$ Visa Purchase Account Program. The Board will also represent the collective interests of the organizations that made pledges and will continue to broker the community pledges to the target airline (or airlines) in exchange for minimum service level.
"I believe the Mayor has put a great group together for this Fair Fare$ Board, blending regional interests, local businesses, and governmental and economic development personnel to ensure the success of continued air service enhancements," said Carl Harris.
The Fair Fare$ Program was introduced to the community in December 2001. Numerous organizations endorsed its strategy and actively worked to implement the effort across the entire regional market area. Those organizations included: The Greater Wichita Area Chamber of Commerce, the Business Investment Group (BIG), the Regional Economic Area Partnership (REAP), the Wichita Airport Advisory Board (WAAB), the Wichita Area Outlook Team (WAOT), a group of travel agents, and chamber and economic development agencies in a 16-county area surrounding Wichita.
"The Fair Fare$ campaign is an incredible economic development success story for South Central Kansas," said Troy Carlson, Chairman of the Board. "It proved to our community that we do control our economic destiny when we partner around a common cause.
For years, it was accepted that Wichita and the surrounding area was destined to have high airfares, which was the single largest economic development stumbling block facing us. We have now proven to ourselves that we can accomplish great things when private and public entities work in unison."
In addition to overseeing the pledge conversion, the Board also oversees the travel bank program and the contractual agreements with Intrust Bank. Intrust Bank provides the Fair Fare$ Visa program.
The Fair Fare$ Visa Program is a unique concept that was developed by Board Member Dave Wood. The program converts community-funded pledges into a line of credit that can be charged against as travel arrangements are made. In doing so, those company's pledging support do not have to present the total monetary pledge upfront, but will "pay" on their account as they use the travel card for air service.
"The entire Fair Fare$ program is an innovative initiative that the greater Wichita community rallied behind," said Mayor Bob Knight. "The people of Wichita made it clear that they were tired of the higher fares and they were ready to do something about it. These individuals will keep that energy and fire alive and will work to ensure the integrity and the spirit of the Fair Fare$ program."