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Steamboat Springs — By Dave Ruppel's estimation, it was a good season for Yampa Valley Regional Airport.

Revenue figures on the year aren't yet in, the airport manager said, but concessions were strong, seats on flights increased and the airport made several improvements, he said.

"The areas that we'd been able to identify last season as kind of bugs in the system, we got most of those worked out successfully," Ruppel said. "In general, everyone was very happy with how the season had gone."

Those bugs included hiccups in the baggage system, he said. The airport had issues last year with bags getting backed up but ironed those out this season, Ruppel said.

The airport also got positive feedback about the new snack bar and gift shop in the secure area of the terminal, he said. The HDN Paradise Bar & Grill and the Hangar gift shop are accessible to those outside the passengers-only area. This season, those inside the secure area could head to smaller versions of those: the Hot Dog'n Paradise snack bar and the Hangar Express gift shop.

Those businesses are contracted out, Ruppel said, and the airport gets a percentage of the revenue.

Ben Gero, who owns Design of the Times in Steamboat Springs, owns the two gift shops. It helps to have one in the secure area, he said.

"There are delays in the wintertime," Gero said. "It's not necessarily our problem - it's Chicago, St. Louis and Atlanta that can't get their act together, not us. There are delays, and that really helped from a customer standpoint. They had something; they could buy another magazine or another book."

It was a smooth year for the new shop, he said.

"It was busy, and that's great. That's a good thing," said Gero, who has been at the airport for 11 years. "I think it gets busier every year. We get more visitors : and that's what we want - what everybody wants."

The Hangar Express is closed for the off-season, he said, but the Hangar will be open a couple hours before departures. The snack bar is closed, but Ruppel said he thought the HDN Paradise Bar & Grill would be open with limited hours. Owner Trini Riley could not be reached for comment.

During mud season, United Express will run three Denver flights a day, Ruppel said. Airlines added about 12,000 round-trip seats for the season, said Janet Fischer, director of airline programs with Steamboat Ski and Resort Corp. That meant an increase in capacity of about 8 percent, she said.

"Overall for the season, we think that everything was successful," Fischer said. "We had the new additions - the United to Chicago service and expanded service from La Guardia and JFK. Those performed according to our expectations."

Ski Corp. doesn't have its firm numbers yet, either, but Fischer said she expected to see a 2 percent increase in passengers for the season.

Fischer also said she heard far fewer complaints about airport issues such as lost baggage.

"We definitely had a challenging winter, weather-wise, for getting planes in and out," she said. "I would say as a company that we're really pleased with the new facility out there and the Phase 2 that's complete, and it just provides a much better experience for our mutual customers."

The airport was in the black last year for the first time, Ruppel said, and he expects a profit again this year.

"The goal is to develop a fairly good size working capital fund," he said. "It's now about $1 million, and we hope to make it grow."

That fund gives the airport some flexibility in paying for projects. The Federal Aviation Administration covers most major improvements, such as the recent construction, he said. But the agency typically requires a 5 percent local funding match. The capital fund could contribute to that.

Another new twist this year was advertising. An outside company previously handled it, but airport Business Manager Doris Mayhan took over, Ruppel said. That has provided a solid revenue stream, he said.

"She's done a great job working it out and getting contracts with companies that advertise here," Ruppel said. "She has been very successful with it."