I’ve been up in the air quite a bit in recent months, so I’ve gotten more familiar with the ins and outs of Savannah/Hilton Head International.
Flights can certainly be pricey out of small markets such as ours, but there’s hope we’ll see lower fares if consumer options continue to expand.
But we sure get convenience in exchange for those relatively high prices.
On one recent trip I had to wait about five minutes in the security line, but most of the time I walk right through, especially if traveling later in the day.
And it literally only takes about 40 minutes from the time I leave my house near Forsyth Park until I’m at the departure gate. The digital boarding passes make life even easier, so I’m not sure why so many are still walking around with little slips of paper.
And economy parking for $8 a day and $40 a week? Hard to beat those prices.
Since JetBlue came to town, the terminal definitely seems busier, and the typical Delta or US Airways traveler doesn’t have to walk past quite so many empty gates.
Of course, despite recent increases in traffic, the Savannah airport still has considerable excess capacity.
There were almost 86,000 deplanements in March compared to 72,000 in March 2013. That’s a huge jump, but there were almost 100,000 deplanements in March 2005 before the major expansion of the terminal and the parking facilities.
Will the Savannah airport maintain the sense of ease and convenience if and when traffic surpasses the pre-recession peak? That might be the $748 question.
The inside of that old red brick building
Because of the threat of rain, One West Victory hosted some of the events associated with May’s First Friday Art March.
I was especially anxious to see how the developers and the local architecture firm Gunn Meyerhoff Shay handled the renovation of the lovely old brick building at the center of the complex.
One West Victory is using that stand-alone red brick structure as its leasing office. Hugh Acheson’s new restaurant The Florence will be in the historic building immediately to the east.
But the brick building, which is especially prominent if you’re turning onto Victory Drive from Whitaker Street, doesn’t just have a leasing office. There’s also a small workout area on the main level. Upstairs, residents can hang out in a lovely common area with expansive views north and west.
The second floor also contains a large communal studio, which should get regular use by the SCAD students who are the target residents.
It’s a lovely space through and through.
City Talk appears every Sunday and Tuesday. Bill Dawers can be reached via billdawers@comcast.net. Send mail to 10 E. 32nd St., Savannah, GA 31401.
