Airport to get pilot lounge
SUPERIOR – The only airport left in Mineral County will be getting new facilities and improvements to existing ones in the near future after county commissioners signed off on the improvement plans on Friday, July 25.
The commissioners officially gave their seal of approval to the plans that had been examined by them at a previous meeting. Airport Manager Steve Temple said the new amenities at the facility would allow weary pilots to rest, refuel and check the weather.
He said the other issues addressed at the meeting Friday included determining hanger lease rates, the insurance policy and revisions to the plans. The work will also include indications on the ground that will provide vital information to incoming aircraft.
“We are going to mark the runways and taxiways with a marking that shows our object-free zone,” Temple said. “That’s the zone where nothing can exist, no objects above ground level. There will also be markings in front of the hangers that will show the hanger owners and hanger tenants.”
Temple said the markings would tell aircraft that there was nothing obstructing their approach path. He said the other major project was to build a facility he said was fairly standard for airports of this size. Temple said a pilot’s lounge will provide a comfortable place with a variety of resources for aviator needs.
“The pilot lounge will provide a restroom for visiting pilots,” Temple said. “They will be able to fuel up with our fuel system. They will be able to pick up weather (information) while they’re there. It’s pretty typical around the country when you have a small airport to have a pilot’s lounge.”
Temple said the issue of whether to require pilots who have aircraft at the facility to carry insurance was yet to be determined. He said the potential downside of requiring all tenants to have insurance was some don’t want to pay for coverage and Temple was concerned they might lose tenants if they enact the requirement.
If they lose pilots, Temple said, they could lose federal dollars with them.
“An airport has to have ten based aircraft in order to qualify for FAA funding,” Temple said. “The funding is pretty substantial. It’s $150,000 a year so we want to do all we can to preserve the pilots that are already based here. It’s in everybody’s best interests. We want to make sure we don’t do something that will chase pilots away.”
Temple said they would reexamine the issue and make a recommendation to county commissioners at a future meeting. Commissioner Duane Simons said the work at the airport would ensure the viability of the facility.
“I think it’s going rather well,” Simons said. “The airport board works very well with the commissioners. There’s always questions about why, with as little air traffic as we have out there, are we putting money into this airport? It’s something we have built on and will continue to build on because it’s definitely an asset to the county.”