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By Drew Lawson
The Record-Times 

Airport project named Project of the Year

Airport Management Association presents award to city

 

Last updated 6/2/2022 at 2:41pm

Drew Lawson | The Record-Times

Davenport mayor Brad Sweet (left) and city administrator Steve Goemmel (right) pose with a plaque awarded to the city as recognition for the 2021 Airport Runway Project.

DAVENPORT – The 2021 project at the airport here to shift, extend and re-construct Runway 5-23 was named the Airport Project of the Year by the Washington Airport Management Association, city administrator Steve Goemmel informed council at the regular meeting Wednesday, May 11.

The project "significantly improves the safety and efficiency of the airfield for its local and regional users, while extending overall pavement life," according to the award nomination letter. "More than just a large construction project for a general aviation airport, the earthwork, rock and asphalt placed during 2021 represented the culmination of nearly 13 years of effort by the City of Davenport to safely control its Runway Protection Zones, meet current FAA design standards, accommodate the existing and projected aircraft fleet mix and remedy its line-of-sight deficiency."


Century West Engineering, which completed the construction job, was also recognized. The city paid for the project through FAA and WSDOT grant funding.

The airport was first paved in 1973 and is used by tourist pilots, ag sprayers and other small-use planes.

The need for reconstruction on the runway became apparent when increasing popularity forced asphalt cracking. The airport, by this point, had begun supporting aerial firefighting and EMT services.

A "hump" in the middle of Runway 5-23 highlighted the issues and need for reconstruction.

An airport layout plan update was first completed in 2009. Seven years later, an Environmental Assessment was completed, followed by an AGIS survey to make sure the airspace was free from obstructions the next year.


Preliminary design engineering was initiated in 2018, with final design engineering and a hangar purchase taken to bid in 2019.

Century West was chosen to complete in the project in 2020, and the work was done last year.

Through the work, the project freed up around 500,000 square feet of land available for applicable commercial and industrial development, the application said.

Author Bio

Drew Lawson, Editor

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Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.

 

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