Spokane International Airport’s Concourse C was busy Thursday morning. Lots of men, women and kids in shorts and backpacks. Horizon Airlines was celebrating its 25 years of consecutive service to and from Spokane. There were cake, punch, dignitaries and long lines of customers wondering what the heck was going on. But in the same concourse, the ExpressJet counter was empty of people. The airline will cease operations here Sept. 2. High fuel costs did it in.

These are turbulent times for airlines, but the Horizon celebration was all about perspective – and the future. The economy is cyclical, the speakers reminded everyone, and travel follows cycles. David Brukardt, member of the airport board, pointed out that when Horizon came to Spokane in 1983, unemployment was 9.6 percent (nearly double what it is now) and mortgage rates averaged 13 percent. Gas, though, was just 81 cents a gallon.

By 1983, the glow from Expo ’74 was long gone. The airport was in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by rural land, its potential waiting. It doesn’t feel as middle-of-nowhere anymore. Airway Heights has grown up around it. But the airport is still surrounded by rural land.

That open land needs to be preserved. Recently, Spokane County Hearing Examiner Mike Dempsey ruled that the second phase of a West Plains apartment project should not go through, because it would encroach upon the airport. The approval of phase one is seen in retrospect as a mistake and a moratorium is in place barring residential construction near the airport. There are sound reasons to limit development near the airport, including:

•Safety. The more homes, cars and businesses near an airport, the higher the potential number of casualties in the event of a crash.

•Efficiency. In airports crowded by development, pilots must make quick climbs and fast descents, because they lack the space to stretch out during takeoffs and landings. Quick climbs and fast descents burn more fuel.

•Money. Airports that get encroached upon pay the price. Sea-Tac, for instance, will spend $100 million on noise mitigation measures, according to Neal Sealock, Spokane’s airport director. Chicago will demolish 500 homes to expand O’Hare International Airport, he said.

•Fairchild. The Air Force base is an economic driver here. But encroachment, which limits the potential for the base to grow, can lead to closure.

•Convenience. The airport is about 10 minutes from downtown Spokane. Traffic is usually light getting there, even in rush hour. Compare that to flying into Sea-Tac and then getting into downtown Seattle. It can take from 40 minutes to two hours, depending on traffic. The convenience of the airport is one reason so many pilots live in the Inland Northwest. They all wish, though, that Spokane had more direct flights.

The airport’s full potential has not yet been realized; keeping it open for the future will pave the way for the next 25 years – for Horizon, the other airlines and the entire community.