Hagerstown Airport Added Two Businesses. Cool. What Does That Create for People Here?

We hear 'new business coming to Hagerstown' and everybody's supposed to clap immediately. I want a little more information before I start celebrating.

Rider Jet Center at Hagerstown Regional Airport announced two new tenants in a release dated October 5. Frederick-based On The Town Limousines opened a Hagerstown office. FAA-designated senior aviation medical examiners Dr. Daniel Weinberg and Dr. Roberta Rothen also moved their practice into the Jet Center's office building.

Those additions make sense. If you're flying in for work, ground transportation matters. Pilots need medical certification too. The company's announcement says Rider Jet Center's office building has about 22,000 square feet, with other services already on site.

An airport doesn't have to be just somewhere planes land.

I actually want to see Hagerstown's airport grow into something that provides more than a way for people with money to get in and out. Airports can be part of a local employment network: maintenance, dispatch, office work, safety, customer service, logistics and other skilled jobs. But let's not mix up a possibility with a promise.

The announcement does not say either tenant has created a certain number of new local jobs. It doesn't give salaries or commit to a training program. I'm not going to make those claims for them just because 'expansion' sounds good in a headline.

When a company moves into an office or adds a new service, I want residents to know whether the work is being done by people from this region. What entry-level opportunities are there? Are there apprenticeships or pathways for somebody studying aviation or technology nearby? Can the economic benefit reach beyond the businesses directly using the airport?

I'm not against luxury services. I'm for a bigger conversation.

I understand why a limo service would follow corporate and charter flights. That's business. And the medical examiners offer a specialized service pilots actually need. I'm not knocking either of them.

But if the county is serious about economic development, it ought to celebrate more than the ribbon cutting. Measure the services residents gain, the jobs created when they're documented and whether small local suppliers get a chance to participate.

So yes, congrats to Rider Jet Center on filling space and adding services. Now show people who grew up around Hagerstown where they fit into the bigger picture.