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WASHINGTON - Congressman Tom Petri announced Monday that the Federal Aviation Administration is releasing $3.4 million in discretionary funds to complete the extension of the Sheboygan County Memorial Airport's Runway 3/21 to 6,800 feet. Petri had met with FAA Acting Administrator Bobby Sturgell to stress the importance of the runway expansion for the local economy.
The project includes extending the runway by 800 feet to the northeast, relocating Meadowlark Road along with associated wetland mitigation, land acquisition to accommodate the extension, and grading for the parallel taxiway extension.
Work to extend the runway began in 2006 and the south end of the project was completed last year with the support of a $4.6 million FAA grant. The project has the full support of the Wisconsin Bureau of Aeronautics, working with the FAA's Minneapolis regional office.
"Timing is critical here," said Petri. "We need to get the work underway in order to complete it before the end of our short Wisconsin construction season, so it's good that we are getting the money now. It's important to keep the Sheboygan area growing and thriving."
The Sheboygan airport is one of the top ten airports in the state. It serves many industrial and business organizations as well as hundreds of vendors, suppliers and national companies that do business with Sheboygan-area firms.
"This is important for every employee of Aerometric Engineering, Bemis Manufacturing, the Kohler Corporation, Orion Energy Systems, Plenco, Richardson Industries, Windway Capital Corporation, and many more," said Petri. "It's also vital for many world class sporting events, including Road America auto racing events and PGA and LPGA Championships, that are hosted at area golf courses."
Airport Manager Chuck Mayer said, "This is wonderful news for the beginning of the week. We have been working meticulously for a number of years to get this done."
Mayer said that the safety advantages of the longer runway are important. He said that currently corporate airplanes often have to leave with light loads, and that the longer runway will enable planes to fly longer distances without refueling, greatly increasing efficiency.
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