Airport project moving forward

The spot may just be smoothed dirt right now, but soon it will be transformed into a parking lot for airplanes.

Dirt work and underground infrastructure construction at the Auburn-Opelika Airport new facility is well under way, Airport Director Bill Hutto said this week.

“We’re in Phase 3, which consists of a large amount of earth moving from the north side of the airport to the south side,” Hutto said.

Workers are in the process of moving a water main that runs through the site, creating storm water drainage and building a retaining wall on the east side of the property for the future road to the new facility.

Federal funding was recently announced for the next phase, which will pave the airplane parking lot, or ramp, and taxiways and install airfield lights and signs. That work should begin in a couple months, Hutto said.

The City of Auburn still has to extend Bent Creek Road at the Interstate 85 Exit 57 interchange, creating another entrance to the airport.

Funding for the main project comes from an ALDOT grant, the Auburn University, the Federal Aviation Administration and the cities of Auburn and Opelika.

The expansion doesn’t mean larger planes, as that is dictated by the length of the runway, Hutto said.

A new airport building has been needed for a long time and was first discussed in the 1980s, he said.

The current building, which was built in 1950, is cramped and peeling paint. A new facility would be a good economic development tool, he said.

“It’s a good front door for the community,” Hutto said. “Our community’s not putting its best foot forward when somebody lands here. We want to have a modern facility that best represents our community…”

At the earliest, the new facility will be operational by the fall of 2009, he said.