Claremont
On Wednesday, the council accepted an $111,000 grant from the Federal Aviation Administration that will pay for 90 percent of the design and review analysis for the new building, said Burr, who also serves as the airport’s manager. The state Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Aeronautics will pay 5 percent and the city 5 percent, or about $5,500.
“This is the first phase,” Burr said. “We expect to put the project out to bid in January and once we choose the qualified low bidder, we expect demolition (of the existing terminal and hangar) will begin in March.”
Burr said officials won’t know the construction costs until the bids are received, but 90 percent funding is guaranteed from the FAA with the state and city sharing the other 10 percent.
The existing hangar was constructed in 1927, the year the airport opened, and Burr said engineers have told the city it is in danger of collapse. Additionally the terminal, which is attached to the hangar, is outdated.
The building is about 8,000 square feet, but the new terminal will not include hangar space. About a year and a half ago, a new city-owned hangar was constructed on another area of the airport property, Burr said.
He estimates the new terminal will be about 1,800 square feet and will include a pilots’ lounge, conference room and office space. At one point, there were discussions about having a small restaurant or cafe as part of the new terminal in hopes it would attract more pilots. But that plan was scrapped for several reasons, including small seating capacity and the cost to accommodate the restaurant, which the FAA would not pay for, Burr said.
“It just did not seem like a feasible plan,” he said.
The construction phase will include a new septic system, new water line, new electrical system and a temporary trailer for the fixed base operators to perform their duties until the new terminal is complete.
The airport has a single-paved runway of 3,100 feet. According to the city’s website, there about 500 landings annually and there are 21 aircraft based at the field, which is on Sullivan Street.
For night landings, the surrounding hills have red beacons and the runway and taxiway have lights that are controlled by the pilots. On the approach, Burr said, the pilots can tune the radio to the airport’s frequency and the lights will come on.
Patrick O’Grady can be reached at pogclmt@gmail.com.
