✈️ Stop the Unfair Land Lease Hike at Gallatin’s Music City Executive Airport (XNX)! ✈️

We, the undersigned tenants, pilots, aircraft owners, aviation enthusiasts, and concerned citizens, call on the Music City Executive Airport Board to immediately rescind the proposed more than threefold increase in land lease rates for hangars at Gallatin’s airport.


Under the proposed rate of $1.85/sq ft, small hangar tenants will go from paying approximately $800 per year to $1,840+ annually — an unsustainable increase for everyday general aviation users. For example, a typical 995 sq. ft. hangar would leap from $800 to $1,840.75 annually. This is an increase of over 130%, with no clear justification or transparency.

General aviation is the beating heart of local aviation communities — and Gallatin is no exception. Behind every hangar door is someone who gives back: a neighbor who volunteers, a mentor inspiring young minds, a pilot who shows up with critical aid when disaster strikes. These aren’t luxury operations — they’re passion-driven individuals who pour time, money, and care into a shared love of flight. And now, they’re being priced out of their own airport.

🔍 What We’re Demanding:

- An immediate rescinding of the board’s decision to raise lease rates until there has been full transparency, proper public input, and fair re-evaluation of the pricing model. No decision of this magnitude should move forward without meaningful dialogue with the community.

- Full accountability for the board’s lack of communication. Numerous tenants have attempted to renew their land leases throughout this year, only to be ignored or stonewalled by airport leadership. We now understand this was intentional, as the board was already planning this rate hike and was avoiding renewals to suppress potential backlash. This level of strategic silence is unacceptable and undermines the public trust.

- Fair pricing that reflects the size, usage, and financial reality of individual tenants. Private aircraft owners and small general aviation users should not be forced to pay the same square-foot rate as multi-million-dollar jet operators.
- Who is the appraisal consultant? We want full transparency into the third-party consultant who appraised the land’s value. What was the methodology? Where is the documentation?
- Why does Gallatin (XNX) justify $1.85/sq ft when North Las Vegas Airport (VGT) for example — a major commercial hub with far more infrastructure and traffic — charges only $1.40/sq ft?

VGT is home to casino companies, VIP charter services, and high rollers, routinely accommodating multi-million dollar private jets and even charging $1,000 ramp fees for wealthy guests during events like the Formula 1 Grand Prix. In 2024, it saw a peak of 2,300 aircraft movements in a single day — Gallatin, by contrast, peaked at just 91 movements.

If North Vegas isn’t charging $1.85/sq ft, what makes Gallatin think it should?


- A fair market comparison with nearby airports like Lebanon (M54), Lafayette (3M7), Springfield (M91), and Portland/Doug Hunter (1M5)— where rates remain much more reasonable — is needed before any changes are considered. Comparison to the likes of higher class towered airports like BNA or John Tune (JWN) will not be tolerated.
  

- Stop the cash grab at public expense. The airport’s efforts to raise rates on tenants comes while simultaneously seeking federal funding — meaning taxpayers are footing the bill for an airport that’s pushing out its most loyal users. This isn’t just a General Aviation issue — it’s a public accountability issue. If the airport desires to receive federal funds, it must be managed in a way that serves the public interest, not just developers or high-end operators.

⚠️ Serious Conflicts of Interest:


This proposal appears to be driven by Matt Harris, the current chairman of the airport board — who is also a real estate developer with significant personal and financial ties to the land immediately adjacent to the airport. Harris has reportedly:

- Sold homes to other voting board members
- Placed one of his own employees onto the airport board
- Secured FAA approval to expand the airport onto his adjacent land, which he stands to profit from by building and leasing new hangars
- Previously ran for State Representative in 2022 but was not elected, later gaining public influence by joining the airport board — a position that lacks the same voter accountability
 

These actions raise deeply troubling concerns of conflict of interest, consolidation of power, and misuse of public trust. When an unelected board actively avoids input from their tenant community, influenced by private development interests, quietly pushes through aggressive lease hikes without consulting tenants or the broader public, it’s not governance — it’s exploitation.  The public deserves transparency, not backroom deals and self-serving maneuvers.

⚖️ One-Size-Fits-All Is Unfair:
 

It is unjust to charge the same rate to:
- A private pilot with a modest general aviation hangar, and


- A commercial operator housing multi-million dollar jets.


Small aircraft owners aren’t just hobbyists — they are mechanics, educators, first responders, and community volunteers. General aviation isn’t a rich man’s playground — it’s a deeply rooted passion that fosters STEM education, youth aviation programs, and community service. Over the past year alone, our local Gallatin General Aviation pilots have provided hurricane relief, medical transport, and flown in support of disaster recovery efforts — all on their own dime.

Penalizing this community with unjust lease hikes will choke out the very people who treat flying as more than a privilege — they treat it as a calling.

📈 The Proposed Rates Are Absurd:
 

Current rates are about $0.50 to $0.80/sq ft. Moving to $1.00/sq ft would already be a significant and unfair increase. But tripling it? That’s punitive, unwarranted, and risks gutting the local GA community.

💪 We Will Not Back Down:
 

We are prepared to pursue every legal and public avenue available to protect the rights of local aviators, preserve fair access to public-use airports, and prevent this kind of overreach.

✍️ Sign this petition to demand fairness, transparency, and community involvement in airport decisions that affect all of us. 

We stand for aviation access, economic fairness, and demand an airport board that works with the community — not behind closed doors.

Please note!!! change.org donations are not collected by us and are only used by change.org for advertising this petition online to the Gallatin community. We are not specifically soliciting donations at this time. If further legal action is required we may consider a gofundme at a later time!