HOT SPRINGS -- New construction and ramp improvements totaling more than $2 million are scheduled to take place during the next 18 months at Hot Springs Memorial Field, airport Director George Downie said Friday.
Downie said the Arkansas Department of Aeronautics will pay for a little more than $1.7 million of the total cost, while the city's share will be slightly more than $300,000.
"After the winter break, contractors have come back and want to put the finishing touches on the Federal Aviation Administration project on extending the terminal ramp and construction of Taxiway Golf, which will complete Phase 3 of the construction," Downie said.
The ramp extension and new taxiway west of the terminal building and adjacent to Runway 13 will provide additional ramp space and taxiway that can be utilized for overflow parking of aircraft on heavy traffic days during the final days of the live thoroughbred horse racing meet at Oaklawn Park, Downie said.
"We're putting in lighting, electrical and signage. We're just waiting on a break in the weather to do the painting of the [ramp and taxiway] markings," he said.
The ramp extension will provide more than 2 acres of aircraft parking, which provides "a lot of square footage the military helicopters can use when they come in and not take up our entire ramp," Downie said. "We can park them all over there now."
The additional space can also be used to park larger jet aircraft that visit during the final days of the live horse racing meet, and leave more space for smaller jets and turbine engine aircraft on other ramps, he said.
AAR, an aviation service company located on the airport, can also use the space to perform engine run ups and staging aircraft while final inspections are performed before they depart.
Downie said the state aeronautics department in early April made funds available to be used to seal coat asphalt surfaces, and if the city can get the work bids, proposals and grant applications in by June, it could receive up to $500,000 to make repairs to the ramps.
Many of the ramp areas are oxidizing, which allows spilled fuel to soak into the asphalt and damage it, but the seal coat material will help protect the asphalt and extend the life of it for as much as seven years, Downie said.
"We want to do all the areas, including the new one because we've already had a fuel spill that the responsible party paid for, but an area about 400 square feet cost $12,000 to fix. If we had the seal coat down, that could have been prevented, but the ramp was new and that was why it damaged it so readily. It just soaked right in," Downie said.
While additional ramp space and taxiways provide major improvements to the airport, aviation people need more hangar space, Downie said.
"We have a large waiting list for general aviation aircraft and have started an aggressive program to start building hangars," he said.
Downie said the airport's large World War II-era hangar just east of the terminal building houses 16 to 17 tenants full time with aircraft ranging from $3 million jets to $15,000 planes, but it needs work.
"It's in need of a new roof, or repair, so we're seeking proposals to put a new roof on there. That will be about $80,000 but is eligible for 50 percent payment from the state, so we're going to pursue that to cut our cost down to $40,000. That is out for bids," he said.
Downie said immediate plans call for building eight T-hangars on the airport's south ramp where several large jet aircraft have been parked for a number of years but have recently been removed.
"We have a $162,000 grant from the state to do some of the dirt work to prepare the area for hangars. We have to relocate some fence and do some more clearing that will be covered by the $162,000."
Downie said the FAA has allowed the airport to use the ramp area to build the hangars on because it would cost between $350,000 and $500,000 to level the hard, rocky area adjacent to the ramp.
"We're going to construct eight hangars within the next seven months, and we're going to construct another 10 hangars by May of next year," he said, noting that water and sewer lines, driveway and security gate have already been constructed.
Good news for the airport, Downie said, is that the VHF Omnidirectional Range navigation system will be decommissioned, but there is no definite time schedule for that.
He said if something major happened to it, the FAA would not repair it, but in the meantime they continue to put money into it through upgrades.
He said FAA regulations prohibit any metal buildings being constructed within a 1,000-foot-diameter circle of the system that might obstruct its signal. Once the system is removed, a large area becomes available for construction.
"We're basically out of land for hangar construction. The airport has 844 acres, but so much of it is restricted for use because of aviation regulations," he said.
In addition to building for current needs, Downie said the airport is building for future needs and plans to put into the 2016 budget the construction of a large hangar to house large turboprop planes and small jets.
"We're starting to get the demand. We don't have any leases right now, but if we build it they will come. We've seen that since I've been here. All the hangars are full, and we have a waiting list to fill the eight T-hangars we'll build right now and a 2,500-square-foot pod on the end of each hangar. I have a customer that wants to put all three of his aircraft in the bigger hangar instead of having them scattered all over the airport as they are now," Downie said.
"We have a need for those hangars and we'll fill them up immediately. That's why, in July, we want to apply for the second phase of grants to build 10 more hangars," he said.
Downie said "business is booming" at the airport as far as hangar space, rentals and real estate is concerned, but fuel sales are down.
"This year, fuel sales are down tremendously over previous years. This is probably going to be one of the worst five or six months that I can remember, even during the post-911 days," he said.
"People just aren't flying. Corporate people are still not flying. This week we had a real good week with a lot of corporate jets in, and had a good week before that, but the weather is keeping the small guy grounded, and keeping the military helicopters grounded. We had 14 helicopters scheduled, and they canceled due to the weather. That would have been 5,000 to 6,000 gallons in fuel sales we lost.
"Out of the 86 aircraft based here, probably less than 20 percent fly regularly, and you can probably add another 20 percent that fly monthly," he said.
"Airports that are successful in the state of Arkansas have a good leasing program, a good aviation side and a good land side. You have to be successful all the way around or you're going to be dipping into the General Fund, and no one wants that, especially the FAA," Downie said.
Metro on 04/27/2015