Ohio University Receives FAA Funds
for Airport
Extension Project
Contact: Jack Jeffery, (740) 597-1793 or (740) 593-1043
Editors: Photos from today's press conference may be downloaded at:
Cutline information is available under the "file information" option in Photoshop.
Editors, Reporters: A sound bite from Rep. Strickland can be obtained at: (202) 226-5654, #150
ATHENS, Ohio (August 29, 2000) -- An extension of the Ohio University Airport runway will be a boost to the entire southeast Ohio region, officials and business leaders said today in announcing that federal funds have been received to begin preliminary work on the project.
Ohio University will receive a $480,000 grant from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to begin work on extending the Ohio University Airport runway from 4,200 feet to 5,600 feet, U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland and Ohio University President Robert Glidden announced today at a press conference at the airport in Albany, about nine miles west of Athens. Phase 1 of the project includes the development of engineering plans for extending the runway, lengthening the parallel taxiway and acquiring 14 acres of land.
"We can eventually have a runway that will enable the airport to do what it previously couldn't do and that is handle bigger planes," Strickland said. "I am confident that it will lead to increased development in the area and will be one of the building blocks essential to the region. This project came about after a lot of hard work and effective advocacy."
The project will benefit both businesses and residents.
"This will allow corporate jets and small commuter planes to land in the area and should open up economic and other opportunities for the entire region," Glidden said. "There could eventually be commuter service that will help to connect southeast Ohio more to the rest of the state. We will continue to work with this community (Albany) to keep people informed of plans and move forward in a way that's best for all."
Strickland and Glidden were joined at the press conference by U.S. Sen. Michael DeWine district representative Lynn Crow, Athens Area Chamber of Commerce CEO Bill Arnett, Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors Chairman Mark Bisang, avionics students and other community members to announce the award.
Currently, there are no runways of 5,000 feet or longer in the 26 Appalachian counties in southeast Ohio. Travelers with needs served by such facilities must drive to airports in Columbus, Cincinnati and Parkersburg, W.Va. Other runways that are 5,000 feet or longer in Ohio are located in Toledo, Cleveland, Youngstown, Akron-Canton, Findlay, Mansfield, Springfield, Dayton, Columbus and Cincinnati.
"This airport expansion project is good news for more than just Athens -- this is a positive step for our regional transportation system," Arnett said. "Our road networks have improved over the last decade and are continuing to get better, but roads aren't everything. For some companies, air transportation is just as important as highways. This project will help make our whole region more marketable from a transportation standpoint."
Bysang said, "The runway extension will help us to be more active in recruiting people to southeast Ohio and better serve our existing business people. They can have more face-to-face communications with customers and clients."
A statement from DeWine emphasized the project's employment potential.
"This project is important for southern Ohio for mainly one simple reasons -- jobs," Crow read in prepared remarks from DeWine. "Š With increased accessibility into the region, more companies will hopefully locate their business operations in this region, while those businesses already located here will be more likely to expand and grow their operations.
According to the National Air Transportation Association, aviation is the biggest stimulator of economic development in communities. Several area business leaders wrote letters to the FAA in support of the extension.
"When it comes to economic development for regions such as Appalachian Ohio, airports are to the first part of the 21st century what highways were to the last half of the 20th century," said David Wilhelm of the Appalachian Ohio Development Fund. "Airports are the linchpin for economic development."
A runway extension also will increase educational opportunities for Ohio University undergraduate and graduate students in aviation and avionics, Glidden said.
The airport provides support for the university's major in aviation, which includes about 100 undergraduate students, and the Avionics Engineering Center, which includes about 40 undergraduate and graduate students and provides research for the FAA.
"Our Avionics Center is one of the nation's best, and it deserves to have a runway that will accommodate larger planes," Glidden said.
FAA officials recently ruled that the proposed extension is consistent with existing national and environmental policies and objectives
Airport officials said Phase 1 of the project will begin this fall.
