By Rob Stapleton
Alaska Journal of Commerce

Nome's Airport Pizza, which garnered national media attention for its special flying pizza deliveries to nearby Bering Sea villages, is moving off the Nome Airport.

Matt Tomter, co-owner of Airport Pizza, said the state Department of Transportation wanted to charge his business 8 percent of his gross earnings in taxes and fees each year.

"I see the state giving all kinds of concessions to big business, like the oil companies, and all they give small business owners is the middle finger," Tomter said. "Eight percent before expenses is just about enough to take away any profit from a small rural business. That's a pretty big hit."

The Tomters had negotiated a reduction in the charges from 8 percent to 4 percent, but ultimately decided to move the thriving pizza business to a new building near the airport.

Airport Pizza will still deliver to nearby villages, the pizzas just might not be has hot when they get to the aircraft, Tomter said.

Tomter's wife, Jerry Ann, started the locally made pizza business a year ago in hopes of employing local people and to offer a service to the community.

Airport Pizza employs eight local minorities, full- and part-time workers. The Tomters prepare their pizzas at their location at the Nome Airport, located more than a mile from downtown Nome. This made it convenient for their landlord, Frontier Flying Service, to deliver the pizzas to the St. Lawrence Island villages of Gambell and Savoonga, which the airline did at no cost.

"We did this as a service to the villages, to let the villagers know how much we appreciated their business," said Craig Kenmonth, general manager of Frontier Flying Service. "It also helped the Airport Pizza get their pizzas into the villages."

Located in the former Cape Smythe passenger lounge, right next to Frontier Flying Service's hangar in Nome, Airport Pizza attracted lots of attention both on and off the airport.

"It a shame to see them go off the airport," Kenmonth said. "We thought we were doing our customers and them a favor by letting them sub-lease from us. But I guess the state is only interested in making a buck off of the small guy."

According to the state Department of Transportation's aviation leasing division, new regulations allow the state to charge hotel, food, beverage and liquor businesses located on state airport property up to 8 percent of their total gross revenues.

"The state can charge rent for the property or 8 percent of the gross revenue, whichever is greater," said Becky Iles, chief aviation leasing officer for the DOT.

Taste of 270, another business located on the Nome airport on Hageland Aviation Service's lease that sells coffee and sandwiches, is also paying the state, Iles said.

According to Iles, the state negotiated the amount down from the original 8 percent of Airport Pizza's gross after the Tomters asked for some relief.

"Yes, we reduced the amount after we reviewed the sub-lease agreement with Frontier Flying Service," Iles said. "But Airport Pizza, or Frontier Flying Service, is obligated to pay the state when it comes due."

Airport Pizza still thinks that 4 percent of the several hundred thousand they have earned from tomato sauce and pizza dough is too much.

"We are moving into a new building near the airport, and even with lease and insurance, we will still have to pay out less for that," Tomter said.

Rob Stapleton can be reached at rob.stapleton@alaskajournal.com.