Pulaski County Board of Aviation Commissioners to hold Public Hearing on Airport Expansion

The Pulaski County Airport expansion project is still a very hot topic, as Chris Smith approached the Commissioners this week to ask about the process to close a road. The proposed expansion for the airport would require the closure of road 100 West, in addition to a large amount of land acquisition from citizens. Many residents feel that this is not only unnecessary, but that it would violate many of their rights.

Smith told the commissioners that the expansion would take 80 acres of land out of the tax rolls, which would have to be made up elsewhere. She feels that this expansion would ultimately lead to higher taxes to make up the loss of land, and there are many implications in this project that taxpayers are not aware of. She urged the commissioners to use their power to prevent this expansion from happening.

“All you have to do is not close this road and it’s done,” Smith said.

The Airport Association Board has been looking into expanding their runway by 800 feet, which would allow larger corporate aircraft to land at their airport without jeopardizing their insurance. Several citizens commented previously that larger planes have access in Logansport and Rochester, and that there is no need for this kind of expansion for the airport. One common complaint is that the reports used give false numbers on how regularly the airport is used, and several people have stated that they know that the airport has nowhere near the amount of traffic it claims.

There will be a public hearing on the matter by the Pulaski County Board of Aviation Commissioners on May 19th at 8:00 p.m. ET at the snow removal building at the Pulaski County Airport, and the commissioners recommended that all of the citizens that are concerned should attend the meeting as a group to express their concerns.