Judge dismisses suit against Islip over fee hikes for light aircraft at MacArthur Airport
A judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by Fred Coste, a small private hangar owner, over a fee hike in taxiway fees at MacArthur Airport. Credit: James Carbone
A federal judge has thrown out a $2.5 million lawsuit filed against the Town of Islip over fee hikes to access Long Island MacArthur Airport for tenants at an adjacent airplane hangar.
The suit's dismissal last month falls in line with a recommendation from another magistrate judge issued in late June that stated plaintiff Fred Coste, of Holbrook, who owns the hangar through his company November Romeo LLC, demonstrated that access to the disputed taxiway was subject to an agreement between the parties, meaning Coste lacked a permanent legal right to access the property.
The judge also said Coste lacks standing to bring claims on behalf of his tenants or other third parties.
Following that recommendation, Coste said he would no longer pursue the suit.
“I had to start this litigation because the town was trying to extort a great deal of money from me,” Coste said. “They said they were going to barricade the taxiway if I didn't pay up.”
“If the town does in fact force me to close at this point, it’s not going to hurt me as much as it’s going to hurt my tenants,” he added.
Coste sued Islip in February 2023 after the town suddenly raised airport access fees from $1,795 to $29,514 per month, a more than 1,500% increase, Newsday previously reported.
The suit, filed in federal court in Central Islip, also said the town had threatened to barricade access to the taxiway, which hangar tenants have used for 53 years, and demanded that Coste rebuild the taxiway connecting his property to the airport at an estimated cost of $150,000, rejecting an alternate proposal to repave the road for about $60,000.
Pilots who use the hangar and taxiway expressed concerns that the dispute could displace their aircraft, potentially forcing several to sell their planes amid a national shortage of hangar space.
Tenants at the hangar include the congressionally chartered Civil Air Patrol, which accesses MacArthur through the Holbrook property.
“We don’t know right now,” said Lt. Col Andrew Balistreri, the Long Island group’s deputy commander, of the air patrol’s future.
“That whole situation should never have come up. Civil Air Patrol has been operating out of there for over 50 years. Never had an incident with it,” he added.
According to court records, an agreement allowing indefinite access to the airport was signed by an airport manager at MacArthur and the hangar’s previous owner in 1990. Coste has requested a more formal agreement since.
“Any proposed lease agreement between the town and property owner will have to comply with Federal Aviation Administration rules governing through the fence operations,” said Islip spokeswoman Caroline Smith, when asked for comment about the suit’s dismissal.
Coste said he plans to give his tenants time to relocate. He also intends to continue with plans to sell the site as industrial property.
Coste purchased the 4.77-acre Holbrook facility to the southeast of MacArthur Airport in 2003. His tenants account for 21% of MacArthur’s light general aviation aircraft activity, according to Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, an aviation group that represents more than 300,000 members across the country.
The group had urged the town in a letter to "act swiftly" to come to an agreement, pointing to a 2021 AOPA survey that found 71% of airports have a waiting list for their hangars, demonstrating a "severe" shortage of aircraft hangar storage across the country.
Since 1969, owners of light aircraft, or planes that weigh less than 12,500 pounds, have accessed MacArthur through a taxiway connecting the property to the airport.
A federal judge has thrown out a $2.5 million lawsuit filed against the Town of Islip over fee hikes to access Long Island MacArthur Airport for tenants at an adjacent airplane hangar.
The suit's dismissal last month falls in line with a recommendation from another magistrate judge issued in late June that stated plaintiff Fred Coste, of Holbrook, who owns the hangar through his company November Romeo LLC, demonstrated that access to the disputed taxiway was subject to an agreement between the parties, meaning Coste lacked a permanent legal right to access the property.
The judge also said Coste lacks standing to bring claims on behalf of his tenants or other third parties.
Following that recommendation, Coste said he would no longer pursue the suit.
“I had to start this litigation because the town was trying to extort a great deal of money from me,” Coste said. “They said they were going to barricade the taxiway if I didn't pay up.”
“If the town does in fact force me to close at this point, it’s not going to hurt me as much as it’s going to hurt my tenants,” he added.
Coste sued Islip in February 2023 after the town suddenly raised airport access fees from $1,795 to $29,514 per month, a more than 1,500% increase, Newsday previously reported.
The suit, filed in federal court in Central Islip, also said the town had threatened to barricade access to the taxiway, which hangar tenants have used for 53 years, and demanded that Coste rebuild the taxiway connecting his property to the airport at an estimated cost of $150,000, rejecting an alternate proposal to repave the road for about $60,000.
Pilots who use the hangar and taxiway expressed concerns that the dispute could displace their aircraft, potentially forcing several to sell their planes amid a national shortage of hangar space.
Tenants at the hangar include the congressionally chartered Civil Air Patrol, which accesses MacArthur through the Holbrook property.
“We don’t know right now,” said Lt. Col Andrew Balistreri, the Long Island group’s deputy commander, of the air patrol’s future.
“That whole situation should never have come up. Civil Air Patrol has been operating out of there for over 50 years. Never had an incident with it,” he added.
According to court records, an agreement allowing indefinite access to the airport was signed by an airport manager at MacArthur and the hangar’s previous owner in 1990. Coste has requested a more formal agreement since.
“Any proposed lease agreement between the town and property owner will have to comply with Federal Aviation Administration rules governing through the fence operations,” said Islip spokeswoman Caroline Smith, when asked for comment about the suit’s dismissal.
Coste said he plans to give his tenants time to relocate. He also intends to continue with plans to sell the site as industrial property.
Coste purchased the 4.77-acre Holbrook facility to the southeast of MacArthur Airport in 2003. His tenants account for 21% of MacArthur’s light general aviation aircraft activity, according to Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, an aviation group that represents more than 300,000 members across the country.
The group had urged the town in a letter to "act swiftly" to come to an agreement, pointing to a 2021 AOPA survey that found 71% of airports have a waiting list for their hangars, demonstrating a "severe" shortage of aircraft hangar storage across the country.
Since 1969, owners of light aircraft, or planes that weigh less than 12,500 pounds, have accessed MacArthur through a taxiway connecting the property to the airport.
Brianne Ledda covers the Town of Islip for Newsday. She previously covered Southold and Greenport for The Suffolk Times and is a graduate of Stony Brook University.
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