MONROE - It may be a longshot, but Monroe Municipal Airport would like to receive some of the $1.1 billion available for airports in the federal economic stimulus package.
The money could be used at the Monroe airport for anything from sealcoating runways to putting up fences to keep deer out of landing areas.
Airport Manager Kelly Finkenbinder said he and the board are going to try to get some of the American Recovery and Reclamation Act (ARRA) money, which will be distributed through the Federal Aviation Administration.
The FAA will be considering projects submitted in the last calendar years, and grants will be fully funded by the federal government, David Greene, director of the Wisconsin Bureau of Aeronautics, said Thursday.
The FAA will be looking mostly at commercial airline carriers, Greene said.
"That's the downside for small airports," he said. "This happened so quickly, (that) little airports weren't ready."
The ARRA bill calls for the U.S. Secretary of Transportation to distribute the funds as "discretionary grants to airports." Priority is to be given to projects that can have a Notice to Proceed issued within 30 days of the grant offer and can be completed within two years.
So far, Greene has heard of two projects confirmed and expects Wisconsin airports will receive about $13 million.
The secretary will be awarding at least half of the funds before the end of June, and the remaining funds by March 2010.
Large airports have the funds to design projects quickly and are waiting for funding, Finkenbinder said.
"We live paycheck to paycheck," he added.
During a meeting of the City of Monroe Airport Board of Management on Wednesday, member Paul Hannes asked whether the city could access any ARRA funds.
Finkenbinder said he will meet with a state Bureau of Aeronautics representative to determine which projects the airport could apply to the grant process.
The Wisconsin Bureau of Aeronautics has a Five-Year Airport Improvement Program for scheduling individual airport projects that are eligible for federal and state assistance.
The city submitted its most recent regular petition to the state program for airport improvement in January. That petition included sealcoating airfield runways, construction of a new office (terminal) building; an approach survey; upgrade an Automated Weather Observing System; and maintenance of runway approaches.
The city had petitioned in previous years for a deer/security fence. That project has not been completed, Finkenbinder said.
Finkenbinder said he will find out whether the past petition is in effect for the federal ARRA grants. If so, he will apply for more fencing; or re-petition for it, or apply and re-petition simultaneously.
Future plans for the city's airport include an instrument landing system on runway 30 ($50,000) and designing a parallel taxiway ($1.5 million) in 2010; constructing the taxiway ($1million) in 2011; purchasing land and constructing a detention pond ($250,000) in 2012; and repaving the runway ($1 million) in 2013. Those projects would occur only with state or federal funding.
The money could be used at the Monroe airport for anything from sealcoating runways to putting up fences to keep deer out of landing areas.
Airport Manager Kelly Finkenbinder said he and the board are going to try to get some of the American Recovery and Reclamation Act (ARRA) money, which will be distributed through the Federal Aviation Administration.
The FAA will be considering projects submitted in the last calendar years, and grants will be fully funded by the federal government, David Greene, director of the Wisconsin Bureau of Aeronautics, said Thursday.
The FAA will be looking mostly at commercial airline carriers, Greene said.
"That's the downside for small airports," he said. "This happened so quickly, (that) little airports weren't ready."
The ARRA bill calls for the U.S. Secretary of Transportation to distribute the funds as "discretionary grants to airports." Priority is to be given to projects that can have a Notice to Proceed issued within 30 days of the grant offer and can be completed within two years.
So far, Greene has heard of two projects confirmed and expects Wisconsin airports will receive about $13 million.
The secretary will be awarding at least half of the funds before the end of June, and the remaining funds by March 2010.
Large airports have the funds to design projects quickly and are waiting for funding, Finkenbinder said.
"We live paycheck to paycheck," he added.
During a meeting of the City of Monroe Airport Board of Management on Wednesday, member Paul Hannes asked whether the city could access any ARRA funds.
Finkenbinder said he will meet with a state Bureau of Aeronautics representative to determine which projects the airport could apply to the grant process.
The Wisconsin Bureau of Aeronautics has a Five-Year Airport Improvement Program for scheduling individual airport projects that are eligible for federal and state assistance.
The city submitted its most recent regular petition to the state program for airport improvement in January. That petition included sealcoating airfield runways, construction of a new office (terminal) building; an approach survey; upgrade an Automated Weather Observing System; and maintenance of runway approaches.
The city had petitioned in previous years for a deer/security fence. That project has not been completed, Finkenbinder said.
Finkenbinder said he will find out whether the past petition is in effect for the federal ARRA grants. If so, he will apply for more fencing; or re-petition for it, or apply and re-petition simultaneously.
Future plans for the city's airport include an instrument landing system on runway 30 ($50,000) and designing a parallel taxiway ($1.5 million) in 2010; constructing the taxiway ($1million) in 2011; purchasing land and constructing a detention pond ($250,000) in 2012; and repaving the runway ($1 million) in 2013. Those projects would occur only with state or federal funding.