Commissioners Revisit Airport Discussion, Vote to Move Forward with Expansion

The board of Carroll County Commissioners voted, 3-2, Thursday to reverse a previous decision and move forward with the 2007 Airport Master Plan which includes a runway expansion at the Carroll County Regional Airport.

In January 2012, the commissioners voted, 3-2, against expanding the airport runway, a departure from the master plan which was already being implemented when the current board of commissioners took office in 2010. 

Commissioner Doug Howard, who voted in favor of the expansion in 2012, said he put the issue back on the agenda for discussion because the county will soon lose access to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) funds for the project. 

Additionally, the FAA and Delta Airport Consultants have revised the scope of the project. 

Chief of Staff Steve Powell said a revised cost estimate to build a new runway and taxiway puts the project closer to $50 million rather than the original $74 million. Additionally, forecasts for the necessary length of the expanded runway will likely be closer to 5,400 feet as opposed to the 6,400-foot runway previously discussed.

Using the latest numbers, Powell said the most likely outcome would be a 5,400-foot runway which would be moved 250 feet west and 600 feet north of the current runway and a separation between the taxiway and runway. 

Commissioner Haven Shoemaker—who voted against the expansion in 2012—said that more recent data made it a worthwhile endeavor to him.

Shoemaker said that there appears to be some "ecomonic development bang for the buck" in the airport expansion. According to Shoemaker, forecasts project that in 2013 the airport will be responsible for $14 million in business revenue, 237 jobs, $12 million in personal income and $1.2 million generated in state and local taxes.

Shoemaker said he maintains his belief that government should not be in the business of owning an airport but said that with the expansion and other improvements, that maybe someone in the private sector would be more interested in purchasing the airport. 

"It seems to me that if we are going to invest $5 million toward repaving an existing runway then we could spend that same $5 million on an improved runway to make this airport possibly more attractive to privatization, to find a buyer for the thing and unload it," Shoemaker said. 

If the commissioners voted not to expand the runway, the county would still have to repave the runway at a cost of approximately $5 million. Much of the funding for the expansion comes from the FAA, who will cover 90 percent of the costs of the expansion.

Commissioners Robin Frazier and Richard Rothschild both stayed firm in their opposition to the expansion, again voting against it.

Frazier said that Shoemaker's numbers showing the airport is financially viable proves that the existing airport is sufficient and that people are using it as it is. 

Rothshild said data does not show a need for a larger airport in Carroll County.

"Generic arguments that fall into the category of 'bigger is better' ... does not justify pulling the trigger on a $45 million capital project," Rothschild said. "I know of no business in the county saying we need this."  

A new environment assessment must be conducted and that will take between six months to a year to complete, according to Powell. Additionally, the expansion requires an evaluation of airport deisgn guidance and a projection of aircraft. Powell said that the county has $2 million in the Airport Enterprise Fund to begin the necessary environmental assessment with the FAA providing reimbursement later.

Commissioner Dave Roush has favored expanding the airport in both votes, saying that the FAA has designated these funds for projects like this, so if it's not spent in Carroll County, it will be spent on another airport somewhere else.

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