Lawmakers accepted a gift of land from Casella Waste Systems on Wednesday. The donation, valued at $425,000, is a crucial piece of the permitting puzzle needed for expansion at the Newport State Airport in Coventry.
The state-owned airport expansion includes a 1,000-foot runway extension that will allow more and larger planes to land at the facility. The airport is operated by Q Resorts, the operators of Burke Mountain.
But in order to secure a $9.8 million grant from the Federal Aviation Administration to fund the work, more room has to be made for landings and takeoffs. To clear those zones, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources require conservation easements on land owned by the airport and its neighbor: the state’s only active landfill, which is operated by Casella.
Casella’s total contribution to the project includes construction of a stormwater controls system ($300,000), donation of a 66-acre conservation easement ($102,500 for the land, less the value of the easement), right-of-way access ($2,000) and 13 acres ($20,500).
In exchange, the state has agreed to provide Casella with technical assistance on related applications to the FAA if and when Casella wants to expand its operations near the airport. The company plans to open another cell, and as the airport’s neighbor, it would need FAA approval to do so.
The Joint Fiscal Committee on Wednesday unanimously agreed to accept the donation; lawmakers also made a commitment to fund state technical assistance expenses.
Sen. Jane Kitchel, D-Caledonia, said the proposal makes sense because the airport expansion will drive more revenue.
Q Aviation, which took over airport management in 2013, immediately brought a wood-fired pizza restaurant to the site, and plans to work with ski resorts Jay Peak and Q Burke Mountain to increase flight traffic. The business plan also involves construction of a new terminal building and bonded warehouses, and manufacturing light aircraft through another sister company, Flight Design USA.
Kitchel said the planned runway expansion is part of Jay Peak’s mostly immigrant-funded Northeast Kingdom Economic Development Initiative, and also stands to generate income for the state.
The airport was granted a land use permit by the District 7 Environmental Commission in early October, authorizing construction of Phase One of the Airport Master Plan Project.
Once the ground is frozen, VTrans will begin maintenance to remove trees around the runway. Wood will be donated to a winter heat program, according to a newsletter from the Northeastern Vermont Development Association.
The firm J.A. McDonald has been awarded the contract to build the runway in 2015.
Correction: An earlier version of this article said the airport is operated by Q Aviation, the operator is Q Resorts.
