By ANDY GARDNER

MASSENA -- The Town Council may change the central air service provider at Massena International Airport, but the people will get a say in the decision.

Town Supervisor Joseph Gray said Cape Air, the existing provider, and San Francisco-based Boutique Air gave presentations to the board at a Wednesday special meeting.

“It will not be an easy decision … because they’re two great alternatives,” Gray said.

He said Cape Air offers three flights per day to Albany with a connector flight to Boston.

“They said they will continue what they are doing, and they said they expect to have a modern nine-passenger plane by 2018, they’re hoping,” Gray said.

Boutique Air offered direct flights to Boston, Albany, Buffalo, Baltimore and Chicago, and the town could choose to keep the daily flights to Albany.

The Town Council would be able to choose “whatever configuration we prefer, and we would make that known in a letter to the DOT.”

Boutique would have two planes, a Swiss Air “executive plane” that seats eight or nine and a twin engine Beachcraft with a pressurized cabin.

“What they offered as alternatives was five possible destinations and basically they’re saying you tell us where you want to fly,” Gray said.

He said the United States Department of Transportation is giving the town until Dec. 9 to choose a provider. There will be no cost to the town because of the federal Essential Air Service program, which gives subsidies for rural airports to bring in flights to central air hubs.

Gray theorizes that the new president and Congress will leave the program intact.

“As the new Congress and new president move forward, we’ll have to see if they change that … it would be very hard to change it because it’s so popular and serves so many people,” according to Gray.

The public will get to have their say on the two proposals on Nov. 30 at 5:30 p.m. in the Town Hall.