Council approves renovations to airport

At a regular meeting of the Olney City Council on Monday, Oct. 22, the council approved an expenditure of funds to meet grant program obligations involved in the rehabilitation of an Olney Municipal Airport runway and the replacement of airport lighting.

The project, which includes the improvement of Runway 4/22 and its parallel taxiways, and the placement of mediumintensity runway lights for the entire airport, is funded by the Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT) Aviation Capital Improvement Program.

Arpegea Pagsuberon, municipal court clerk for the city of Olney, explained that Olney Municipal Airport qualified for nonprimary entitlement funds, with the program providing grant funding with a 90-10 split. Pagsuberon also thanked Olney Air Tractor and the Olney Industrial Development Corporation for each donating one-half of the city’s 10 percent funding for the grant.

“It is a 10 percent risk investment,” she said. “But, no matter the outcome of the project, we will receive a 90 percent reimbursement of funds by 2019.”

Air Tractor President Jim Hirsch was present at the meeting and commented on the value this project would have on the airport.

“It’s all about protecting our infrastructures and protecting our runways,” he said.

The item was unanimously approved by the council.