City receives airport funding

The Kansas Department of Transportation has awarded more than $620,000 in funding to the City of Chanute for airport improvements.

The state awarded grants to 66 airport projects Wednesday for the Kansas Airport Improvement Program. The KDOT Division of Aviation received 153 applications seeking a combined total of more than $66 million in this round, and awarded more than $11 million.

Of the funding, $424,570 will go to reconstruction of the north concrete apron at the Martin Johnson Municipal Airport, according to Assistant City Manager Ryan Follmer. That will compete the apron project that included work last year.

An additional $180,000 will go to perimeter fencing. The fence work will be done in sections, Follmer said, and the grant will not complete the project.

The fence has deteriorated and allows wildlife like deer to get onto the runway, Follmer said. 

Two years ago, a taxiing aircraft stuck a coyote, although it did not cause serious damage.

The city may be able to use the funds this year if Follmer submits the paperwork early enough, but otherwise he expects the allocation to come in 2024. The length of the projects will depend on the weather.

Follmer said that he appreciates the aviation program and applies every year.

The grants require a minimum match of 5 percent of the total project. The KAIP typically receives $5 million annually through the bipartisan Eisenhower Legacy Transportation Program.

Other area airports that received funding include Coffeyville, which received $272,250 to seal cracks and remark the runway; Allen County, which received $310,500 to replace the automated weather observation system and for taxiway rehabilitation ; and Independence, which received $146,250 for a rotating beacon and tower.