 Each year the committee reviews and approves the capital improvement
project to be performed during the coming year and reviews the
airport's five-year plan, making modifications as needed.Solid
infrastructure is necessary to a strong economy. The federal
government recognizes that airways are part of the U.S.
infrastructure and highly values the benefits that the aviation
system provides. Federal dollars are allocated to support capital
improvements and maintenance for public airports and even some
private airports.
Illinois also values the aviation system as important to the
economy. According to the Illinois Department of Transportation, the
aviation system in the state "is one of the largest and most diverse
airport systems in the United States."
Federal support for airport building and maintenance projects is
coupled with local and state funding. The federal grant portion
usually represents 75 to 90 percent of capital improvement project
costs, with the remaining portion a two-way split between state and
region or local.
No local tax dollars are used to support the operation of the
Logan County Airport, and no tax dollars go toward the matching
portion of grants.
In general, most airports generate revenues from aircraft use
fees, hangar rents, fuel sales, property or building rental, and
other sources. Logan County Airport's primary revenues come from
hangar rental, fuel sales and farm ground rental. These funds are
used to supply matching funds for grants.
Federal assistance
Each year, Logan County qualifies for $148,000 in entitlement
funds supplied by the federal government. These funds may be used in
part or whole on projects in the improvement plan, or they may be
carried over to pool from one year to the next to pay for higher
cost projects.
Airport administrators may also apply for apportionment funds.
These additional funds must meet the approval of the Federal
Aviation Administration and are for important projects that meet
criteria such as improving safety, capacity or noise compatibility.
State assistance
Illinois offered $6,643,615 apportionment funds for airports in
2013.
New rules for federal funding
This year there has been a new set of federal regulations on when
and how apportionment funding may be used, and that led to a change
in the sequence of capital improvement projects planned at the Logan
County Airport for the next five years.
Committee chairman Gene Rohlfs said it was necessary to develop a
new plan, different from the one agreed to last fall with the
Illinois Division of Aeronautics. The new distinction is that any
funds used for income-producing projects are now part of the
apportionment funds. Apportionment funds can be allocated only every
three years.
Apportionment funds may be applied for and added to entitlement
funds. However, once apportionment funds for a profit-producing
project are used, there is a mandatory three-year push-back for any
other projects requiring apportionment funds.
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The Logan County Airport plans have two big projects that
would be revenue producers in the five-year plan: the purchase
of a new "fuel farm" -- a self-serve fuel pump station for
pilots to fuel their aircraft -- and five new hangars.
Another project in the five-year plan that is timely, costly and
needed is a runway overlay.
Because of the importance of upgrading the aircraft fuel delivery
system, the overlay of the main runway at the airport would have to
be postponed from 2015 to 2017 in order to have access to
apportionment funds.
Currently, the 2013 lighting project is being completed. That
project cost $535,000, with the federal government supplying over 90
percent, and the remaining portion, under 10 percent, divided
equally between funds coming from the state of Illinois and revenue
generated by the Logan County Airport.
Logan County Airport's revised five-year Transportation
Improvement Program
-
2014 -- Fuel
delivery system upgrade, $165,000
The current fuel delivery system has not been upgraded for years
and has been prone to service interruptions.
The sale of aircraft fuel is one of the few ways that local
revenue is generated at the airport. No local tax dollars are
used to support the airport.
In addition to providing fuel for locally based aircraft, the
Logan County Airport also attracts considerable traffic from
outside the county for fuel purchases due to its quick and easy
access, location, and prices.
-
2015 -- No major
projects
Due to new apportionment rules, the runway overlay scheduled for
2015 would be pushed back. Crack repair would be performed on
the main runway.
-
2016 -- No major
projects
No work at the airport is scheduled for 2016 in order to save
money, including a federal entitlement for the runway overlay in
2017.
-
2017 -- Runway
overlay and turn-around expansions, $600,000
A major project, the runway asphalt overlay, would also include
increasing the size of the existing turnarounds at the ends of
the runway.
-
2018 – Five-place
T-hangars, $330,000
The final project of the current five-year program is the
construction of new T-hangars in 2018. Because hangars are a
revenue-producing project, no federal apportionment funds will
be available for the following three years.
The airport committee meets at 7 p.m. on the first Monday every
month at the Logan County Safety Complex.
[LDN]
See more on Airport Improvement
Program and a list of eligible projects:
http://www.faa.gov/airports/aip/overview/
Illinois Division of Aeronautics
publication on the economic impact of airport:
http://www.illinoisairportsmeanbusiness.com/
brochures/AAA.pdf
"Estimating the Regional Economic
Impact of Airports":
http://www.faa.gov/airports/aip/bc_analysis/
media/economic_significance_1992.pdf |
