WARWICK — Mayor Scott Avedisian says he’s not surprised that some state business leaders and the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce are publicly backing the proposed southerly extension of the runway at T.F. Green Airport.

He is less than pleased, however, that in doing so, the chamber has described the runway expansion favored by the Federal Aviation Administration as one that serves the airport while “balancing the needs of the local community.”

“The City [of Warwick] has never denied that the airport is an important component of the state’s economy,” Avedisian said this week, adding that he takes issue with the Chamber declaring that the needs of the city have been addressed. “The fact is that neither the FAA nor the RIAC [Rhode Island Airport Corporation] have adequately addressed the city’s long-established concerns related to a number of issues, including potential health effects and environmental issues …,” he said.

Avedisian’s remarks follow a news conference Thursday during which the Providence Chamber met at Green to voice their support for the runway expansion proposal, which is still under review by the FAA. They were joined by Governor Carcieri as Chamber members stressed the need for this small state to have an airport that can support transcontinental flights and be competitive with other regional airports.

Currently, the main runway at Green is about 7,100 feet and it is too short to allow larger planes that are fully loaded with cargo, fuel or passengers to take off. A longer runway would allow the airlines to maximize capacity and allow them to fly to the West Coast from Rhode Island without stopping to pick up additional passengers or cargo.

Extending the runway at Green has been talked about for more than 10 years, with different options. Two proposals would have lengthened the runway to the north, which would have resulted in major relocation of roads, houses and businesses.

About a year ago, Kevin Dillon, president of RIAC, suggested extending the runway about 1,600 feet, but to the south toward Main Avenue. He and airport officials have estimated that only about 10 houses and one business would have to be moved. (They’ve noted that more would qualify for voluntary acquisition because of noise and safety regulations, but would not be required to sell.)

The FAA, which has the final say on the roughly $475-million project, announced last month that it prefers the southerly runway expansion. It is expected to release a preliminary environmental impact statement by the fall.

When told of Avedisian’s concerns Tuesday, Bethany Costello, spokeswoman for the Greater Providence Chamber, said there was no intention to minimize the impact on the host community but the chamber needs to take a stand on what’s best for Rhode Island businesses.

“We think it’s our role to speak on behalf of the business community,” Costello said. “And this [expansion proposal] is best for our goal, which is nonstop service to the West Coast.

“We realize that the airport is a statewide issue,” she said. “The airport could be an economic engine and there are airports all around us, so we need to be competitive.”

Avedisian said he would have appreciated it if representatives of the Chamber had at least met with the city to hear its concerns, which besides health and safety include the still-unanswered question of who is going to pay to relocate community recreation fields that will be displaced.

“If they want to get behind the expansion, then it would be good if they helped resolve some of our issues,” he said.

Avedisian also contended that the airport is not necessarily synonymous with a boon to business. He estimated that if the city was compensated for at least half the taxes the airport would pay if it were a private entity, the commercial tax rate in the city would drop by about 50 cents per $1,000 of assessed value.

bpoliche@projo.com