Columbia Regional Airport plans improvements to facility

The airport is asking for public opinion on changes.

By Danny Ramey

Published March 5, 2009

Columbia citizens should expect to see a variety of changes to the Columbia Regional Airport in the next few years because of the development of the Airport Master Plan.

Airport manager Kathy Frerking said discussion on the plan has mainly focused on airside-pavement needs including the reconstruction and extension of the existing runways and taxiways.

"The Master Plan is a study that will result in a 20-year plan to support the aviation needs of the airport," Frerking said.

She said the plan will also address other needs for the airport, such as terminal space, maintenance facilities and general aviation needs.

Columbia Public Works Department spokeswoman Jill Stedem said no funding has been established for airport improvements at this point, but said the facility's proposed improvements could receive 95 percent of its funding from the Federal Aviation Administration grants with a five percent contribution from the city, which she said is standard for airport improvements.

For the airport to receive money from the FAA for the improvements, those improvements must be included in the Master Plan, Airport Advisory Board Chairman Greg Cecil said.

Throughout the process, city officials will consider public opinions and ideas for the projects. One way the city could achieve this goal, Frerking said, is through the creation of advisory committees.

Frerking said these committees, which consist of policy and administrative representatives from the key local governments and organizations, along with key representatives from the airport, could provide policy guidance to the study process. Then those representatives would report back to their constituents on the direction and progress of the master planning process.

The city has also been hosting meetings with the advisory committees regarding the improvements throughout the process.

Two public meetings have occurred with two more scheduled -- one March 23 and another in late April -- to get public comment regarding the improvements, Stedem said.

For those who may have missed any of the meetings, the information from the each meeting is available on the airport's Web site. The airport also encourages anyone to take comments directly to either the airport staff or members of Reynolds, Smith and Hills Inc., a consulting company hired for the project. The firm is based in Greenwood Village, Colo.

The city is also holding four public information workshops throughout the process.

The Master Planning Process began in November 2008, and Stedem said the final plan will be presented to the Columbia City Council for approval sometime in June 2009.

Frerking said she expects the improvements to have a positive effect on the city as a whole.

"The airport is an important element in the economic success and growth of the area, and any future improvements to airport property will benefit the facility by maintaining its integrity and providing opportunity for growth," she said.

Cecil also sees the improvements as a way to improving the traffic that goes through the airport thanks to the longer runways.

A longer runway, he said, not only allows larger planes to land at the airport, which increases the overall traffic flow, but also allows for increased shipping operations at the airport which could help the city's economy.

"The longer the runway, the more cargo you can get," Cecil said.

He would also like to see the airport become more visible to students because many students aren't aware they can use the airport to fly to an international airport in Memphis instead of having to go to Kansas City or St. Louis by bus or automobile for the same service. He said the improvements could greatly benefit students by offering a larger variety of destinations if larger planes can start landing at the airport.