The Central Illinois Regional Airport is giving a big thank-you to Congressman Darin LaHood for coming through with $1.5 million in grant money.
[We’re]… “very grateful for all the work he's done intrepidly over these last couple of years for the project,” said Airport Authority Board Chair Alan Sender.
The money will go toward planning and part of the construction of an air cargo road extending Airport Road to the south.
"And when built, [it] could pave the way to some new commercial and business development on an undeveloped part, but a very valuable tract of Route 9, prime Route 9 property on Empire Street," Sender said at news conference Monday at the airport.
The total project cost will be about $6 million. Sender said CIRA has committed about $1.5 million of its own money. The airport already has spent some of that on a redesign of the Airport Road-Route 9 intersection. That leaves at least a $3 million gap in funding.
“We are working assiduously on trying to close that gap, working with both state and federal resources and organizations and agencies,” said Sender, adding the timing of construction depends on finding the rest of the funding.
LaHood said he'll defend the expenditure of federal dollars on the local project all day long.
“Investing in the airport here is going to help with jobs and economic opportunities for the region and so [I'm] really proud to play a small role," he said.
A second purpose is to improve safety for airport passengers by diverting truck traffic away from the main airport ring road.
“These improvements are about keeping travelers and employees safe while supporting the long-term competitiveness and economic success of our region," said LaHood. "This is exactly the type of project that demonstrates responsible use of federal taxpayer money.”
Sender also laid out two other CIRA efforts to make the airport and the land it owns an economic engine for the community.
“The mega sites project on the south end of the airport brought utilities to the area, an area that could become Central Illinois' first multi-modal business park, then among the 700 acres that you would see behind the terminal, as [you] look out [to the south], are site locations for a variety of aviation-related commercial opportunities that we are exploring,” said Sender.
