present-day JFK Airport, was also recommended. At the time, the report listed three "Federal or State Fields", three "Commercial Fields", and seventeen "Intermediate Fields" in the New York metropolitan area. Chamberlin was appointed as the city's aeronautical engineer to make the final decision on the airport's location. There was much debate over where the airport should be located. U.S. Representative and future New York City mayor Fiorello La Guardia, himself a former military airman, advocated for a commercial airport to be placed in Governors Island, as it was closer to Manhattan and located in the middle of New York Harbor. He left open the possibility that the outer boroughs could also build their own local airports. La Guardia, along with Representative William W. Cohen, introduced a motion in the 70th United States Congress to establish the airport on Governors Island, but it was voted down. Site chosen Chamberlin chose Barren Island as the site for the new municipal airport. An isolated settlement on the island had been developed in the late 19th century, and at its peak, had been home to "several thousand" people. A garbage incinerator and a glue factory had been located on the island. By the 1920s, Barren Island's industrial presence had dwindled, and only a small percentage of residents remained on the island. In 1927, a pilot named Paul Rizzo had opened the Barren Island Airport, a private airstrip, on the island. Chamberlin chose the Barren Island location over Middle Village for several reasons. First, city officials had already spent $100 million between 1900 and 1927 toward constructing a seaport in Jamaica Bay, having dredged land for the proposed shipping channels. Chamberlin also favored the Barren Island location because of the lack of obstructions nearby, as well as the presence of Jamaica Bay, which would allow seaplanes to also use the airport. Finally, the site was city-owned, while the land in Middle Village was not. City officials believed that an airport at Barren Island would be able to spur development of Jamaica Bay, despite the abandonment of the seaport proposal. However, airline companies feared that the Barren Island Airport would have low visibility during foggy days, a claim Chamberlin disputed because he said there was little history of fog in the area. Construction In February 1928, the Board of Estimate unanimously approved Chamberlin's suggestion to build the airport at Barren Island, allotting a plot on Barren