AIKEN — As Aiken Regional Airport, a favored destination for the private jets of corporations, equestrians and celebrity golfers, finalizes $7.7 million in improvements to its primary runway, Aiken City Council is leveraging matching funds to update the airport’s layout plan and prepare for resurfacing the secondary runway.
The ribbon will be cut Oct. 9 on the 5,500-foot primary runway, formerly asphalt and now concrete. The Federal Aviation Administration paid for 95% of the cost, with the state and city splitting the remaining 5%.
Updating the Airport Layout Plan will be paid for with a $316,352 FAA grant, plus $8,325 each from the city and the S.C. Aeronautics Commission.
Designing improvements to the secondary runway will be paid for with $257,929 from the S.C. Aeronautics Commission, and $28,659 from the city.
City Council authorized moving forward with the planning grants Sept. 28.
“Such a deal! Can’t turn that down,” said council member Kay Brohl.
“We are happy to see the improvements taking place at our airport,” said council member Lessie Price. “I hope I speak on behalf of the entire council in terms of how delighted we are with the excitement about the positive changes that are occurring there.”
“It’s huge for us,” Airport Manager Christopher McCauley, who also is an assistant city engineer, said Sept. 30. “It’s a great opportunity to maintain the infrastructure that we currently have at the airport.”
He said the FAA typically does not support maintenance of secondary runways.
“We’ve been very fortunate to have this opportunity through State Aeronautics,” he said. “They’re pretty dedicated to this project. They actually pursued us once the program became available.”
Construction grants will be secured in a bout a year, he said, anticipating that most of the funding for the improvements will come from the S.C. Aeronautics Commission.
The 3,800-foot-long secondary runway kept the airport functioning during the months-long process of removing the asphalt primary runway, regrading a 1,000-foot-long section and rebuilding it in all concrete.
