40% of the revenue at Denver International Airport goes to debt service.
Denver International Airport is currently around $10 Billion in debt. Approximately $10 Billion in debt on $1.2 Billion in revenue. Chase Bank and Wells Fargo both report that over 50% debt-to-revenue is considered to be risky business.
Our debt-to-revenue at that airport is 830%.
A debt-to-revenue of 830% debt is completely off the charts – not even close to acceptable financial practice. Yet, Chase Bank and other banks work to lend money to that airport. Why is this?
Because that airport is a government monopoly, an enterprise fund monopoly system, not a business. That “business” would never get this much debt in the real world of business. Enterprise funds are government monopolies pretending to be a business.
The banks are willing to lend money to that airport because they know damn well they’ll get paid. The banks know damn well that Denver will use political authority at that government monopoly to take as much money as required from the citizens who use that airport, in order to see to it that the banks get paid.
Denver exploits the citizens of Denver and Metro Denver to service this debt, more than $500 million dollars per year to Chase bank and/or all other banks. The Peoples’ money wasted on debt service. A major drain of the Peoples’ money.
$500 million dollars is enough money to buy 5 Denver Post buildings – every single year. We pay more than a billion dollars every two years for debt service at that airport. More than 10 Denver Post buildings every two years.
The City of Denver recently bought the Denver Post building for $90 million dollars after several months of debate. How much debate do we do on this $500 million dollars in debt service at the airport every single year? About none.
The City of Denver uses political authority to rip-off the citizens who use that airport. Parking and other fees are far too expensive. Travel costs at that airport are far too expensive.
Debt always costs more, on average, over time – a lot more.
All debt does is to kick the can down the road as the can becomes twice the size and three times the size. Debt cheats all citizens who need to use that airport – especially impacting the citizens who struggle to pay the bills, the citizens who rent who use that airport for family and other needs.
All travelers will pay even more in the near future as we will need to take more money than ever before just to give this money to Chase bank and other banks.
Our debt service of $510 million dollars (2023) is almost as much money as the total revenue from all the airlines ($609 million). At the largest airport facility in the United States of America the total revenue charged to the airlines barely covers the interest on the debt.
We maximize the business travel and other travel to Denver Colorado with zero debt and zero profit at that airport.
The lowest travel costs, on average, over time, is with zero debt and zero profit. Basic math. This financial equilibrium requires a pricing strategy congruent with zero debt.
The biggest reason for this financial problem is a written strategy to all but give away that airport to the large wall-street corporations that profit from that airport. The airlines pay far too little in facility rental and landing fees to use that airport. We just continue to subsidize the wall-street corporations at that airport as we continue to borrow money from the wall-street banks in order to operate that airport.
On page 436 of the 2023 budget, you will see why we have such an enormous amount of debt at that airport (paragraph four). After 29 years of service that airport should have zero debt by now.
In order to solve this problem we will need to create a pricing strategy for the airlines and all the other wall-street corporations that profit from that airport – a pricing strategy that is congruent with zero debt.
The most important thing to do to fix this forever debt for Denver International Airport is a new pricing strategy. We would very much like to see this in the next budget for City of Denver.
We recommend the following:
Our pricing strategy at the airport needs to be congruent with zero debt as it does not make sense to waste so much money every year on debt and debt service.
Therefore, starting immediately, our pricing for large corporations will be higher, in some cases, significantly higher. We fully intend to eliminate the debt at this airport. This is fair, this is smart, this is what needs to be done.
This pricing strategy should be published in the next City of Denver budget.
This sends the right message to those who run that airport, to the large wall-street corporations that lease and profit from Denver International Airport, and to the Citizens of Denver that we intend to fix this forever debt at this airport.
Time is always of the essence pertaining to paying down excessive debt. Most of this debt is at an interest rate of more than 5%. Enormous waste.
The enormous debt at that airport represents gross negligence. After 29 years of service that airport should have zero debt by now.
Read the Financial Report for Denver International Airport
