New terminal construction on schedule at regional airport

Cape Girardeau Regional Airport's new terminal construction is on schedule and expected to be substantially complete by March and fully complete by June.

Airport manager Katrina Amos gave updates regarding projects to Airport Advisory Board members at their meeting Tuesday, Oct 10.

The constructor has finished all the electrical and plumbing of the new terminal and is preparing the sides to pour the concrete panels in the coming week. After that, the structural portion of the project will begin, Amos said.

"We are making a lot of really good progress, and we're happy with the direction and the teams work they have been putting in over the last few weeks," she added. "We got a little bit behind because of several storms that occurred in July and August, so we were playing catch up. But we are now where we need to be."

The new terminal project is also doing well from the funding perspective. Pay request No. 4 will be submitted to the city for reimbursement soon, Amos said.

Amos also reported the airport and Zoellner Construction officials are finalizing the design for the T-hangar project. This project will result in the construction of 20 new hangars at the airport.

The airport has received additional guidance from the Federal Aviation Administration, which will help reduce the project's costs. Because of the aircraft type expected to use the area, the airport is no longer obligated to construct hangars to the strength initially demanded by the FAA.

Initially, the hangars' pavement was required to accommodate 30,000-pound aircrafts, but this requirement has now been lowered to 15,000 pounds. Amos mentioned there are currently no aircraft of that size at the airport; instead, the airport requires structures suitable for 12,000-pound aircrafts, but the threshold has been increased to 15,000 pounds as a precautionary measure.

Additionally, Amos reported the FAA has approved the reconstruction and rehabilitation of Taxiway E and D. Both of these projects will receive grant funding, with the city being responsible for matching from 5% to 10% of the funds. Amos also mentioned the airport is currently strategizing how to schedule and finance these projects, considering the city's involvement in numerous other projects.