Airport gets construction project grant

VW independent/submitted information

The Van Wert County Regional Airport Authority recently received a grant from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for $693,991 for Phase 2 of the construction of the south side aircraft parking apron and partial taxiway.

The FAA is funding 90 percent of the project, with 5 percent coming from a grant from the Ohio Department of Transportation’s Aviation Division, and 5 percent from local matching funds.

The airport received the eighth largest grant this year for general aviation airports in Ohio. This project represents another step towards a new airport terminal development area at the airport.

This funding will complete the grading and pavement construction and has been awarded to The Shelly Company.  A grant from the FAA last year for $449,689 completed the drainage improvements and partial grading.

The FAA funding comes from the Airport Improvement Program (AIP). This provides grants to public agencies — and, in some cases, to private owners and entities — for the planning and development of public-use airports that are included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS). These programs are funded from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund, into which are deposited revenues from several aviation-user taxes on such items as airline fares, air freight, and aviation fuel. The program is therefore self-funded by aviation users.

Van Wert County Airport, after years of planning, is moving forward with development to open up the airport’s south side. Elks Drive is being extended and will become the new entrance to the airport.

Planning is also currently underway to construct a new terminal building at that location. Efforts to improve the airport’s functionality to corporate users will be addressed with the new terminal, as well as goals to add a large hangar and extend the runway to better accommodate jet traffic.

The history of the airport dates back to 1935, when the City of Van Wert and Van Wert Area Chamber of Commerce purchased 100 acres of land at the west edge of the city for an airport. In 1939, the city built two identical concrete block aircraft hangars. The west hangar is still in use today as the administration building and maintenance hangar. A storm in March 1948 leveled the east block hangar, which was replaced by a small metal t-hangar that is also still in use today.