Long Beach Municipal Airport
 
10:13am | The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded the city of Long Beach more than $2 million in entitlement funds to cover the cost of improvements at Long Beach Municipal Airport.

The $2,045,569 is being awarded by the DOT via the Federal Aviation Administration, a branch of the DOT that oversees all air traffic-related transportation in the United States. Federal officials said the Airport Improvement Program funds would be used to rehabilitate and upgrade the aircraft terminal apron and taxiway, which is necessary to maintain structural integrity of the pavement in both areas and ensure safe airfield operations.

The city of Long Beach annually applies for and receives AIP funding for airport improvements from the FAA. The local airport is eligible for two different types of funding: entitlement and discretionary. Entitlement AIP funds are allocated to the airport based on the number of passengers enplaned each year, which the FAA plugs into a set formula to determine the local airport’s award. Discretionary AIP funds are allocated to airports based on need and national priority as determined by the FAA.

The City Council on Feb. 8 authorized the city manager to submit the city’s annual Airport Improvement Program funding applications for the 2011 fiscal year. The nearly $8.3 million the city is seeking will cover costs associated with Phase 3 improvements to the carrier ramp, rehabilitation of access to taxiways E and F and an airfield geometry study, according to a staff report of the same date.
 
The more than $2 million awarded to Long Beach Airport this week is part of the FAA’s early release of a portion of the nation’s entitlement AIP funding for the 2011 fiscal year, according to an FAA spreadsheet of Fiscal Year 2011 partial primary entitlements. The spreadsheet notes that the $2,045,569 awarded is 46 percent of the airport’s overall entitlement, meaning the airport should receive at least twice that amount in additional entitlement funds sometime later this year.
 
To download the spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel format, click here.

The remaining funds could be dispersed as soon as this summer, according to city officials.
 
“While there is a chance that the initial funds released in March will be the only funds released this year, FAA staff are hopeful that the remainder of entitlement funds, and potential discretionary funds, will be made available later this summer,” the Feb. 8 Long Beach city council agenda staff report reads. “Therefore, the airport is anticipating processing multiple grants this fiscal year.” 

The multiphase aircraft carrier ramp project has a price tag of $5 million and will feature the reconstruction of the ramp’s pavement and environmental enhancements such as the installation of pre-conditioned air and in-ground electrical. the enhancements are expected to result in reduced emissions because airlines will no longer need to leave their aircraft engines running while loading, unloading or being serviced, according to the report.

The taxiway improvement project has an estimated cost of $2.5 million and includes rehabilitation of the taxiway pavement and improvements to pavement markings, lighting, signage and storm drain systems, according to the report.

The $1.2 million airfield geometry study will evaluate the geometry of the existing airfield and assess alternatives for safety, operational and financial benefits and risk reduction. The report states that the airport must apply separately for funds for the study because it falls under the FAA’s “planning category.”

The grant funds require the airport to cover 5 percent of the cost of the improvement projects, with the FAA covering the other 95 percent.

Click here to automatically download the Feb. 8 staff report regarding the AIP grant applications for the 2011 fiscal year.