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ST. GEORGE — A massive structural repair and upgrade project will necessitate a four-month closure of the St. George Regional Airport next year.
Approximately 5,400 linear feet of runway will need to be excavated and replaced as a result of water entering the soil underneath it and damaging the existing runway pavement, creating the need for continual patching. During the anticipated 120-day construction project, the airport will be closed to all flights from April 25-Aug. 21, 2019.
“We’d love it to be faster but we can’t be telling our airline partners you can sell tickets and then not meet it,” St. George Mayor Jon Pike said, explaining that the city, which owns the airport, consulted with contractors to determine how long the project would take.
The project will cost approximately $27 million, St. George Support Services Director Marc Mortensen said. About 90 percent of the cost will be paid for by an approximately $25 million grant from the Federal Aviation Administration. The city’s share will amount to around $2 million, which will be funded by the airport’s passenger facility charges – a fee assessed to each passenger on every flight.
The St. George City Council approved the grant during a public meeting Thursday.
Mortensen said the repairs are an “absolute necessity.”
Read the full article at St. George News.
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