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State appropriates $15 million that could be used for Oak Ridge Airport

Posted at 1:07 pm December 11, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Image from a Billy Stair presentation on the Oak Ridge Airport project to Roane County officials at the Roane County Courthouse in Kingston on Thursday, Dec. 7, 2017.

Image from a Billy Stair presentation on the Oak Ridge Airport project to Roane County officials at the Roane County Courthouse in Kingston on Thursday, Dec. 7, 2017.

 

KINGSTON—Tennessee officials have appropriated $15 million that could be used for the proposed airport at Heritage Center, the former K-25 site in west Oak Ridge.

The appropriation, which is pending approval of the Oak Ridge Airport by the Federal Aviation Administration, would be enough to cover about 33 percent to 38 percent of the current estimated project cost of $40 million to $45 million.

The appropriation was announced by Tennessee Department of Transportation Commissioner John C. Schroer in a November 8 letter to members of the Tennessee General Assembly. Oak Ridge Today received a copy of the letter on Monday.

The $15 million that could be used for the Oak Ridge Airport is one half of a $30 million appropriation approved by the Tennessee General Assembly for the Aeronautics Economic Development Fund earlier this year, said Billy Stair, a former communications director at Oak Ridge National Laboratory who is now a consultant helping with the airport project. That half was to support the construction of new general aviation airports like the project in Oak Ridge, and Oak Ridge received all of the $15 million for general aviation airports, Stair said.

“MKAA (Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority) is the only public entity in the state with planning documents for a new airport currently under review,” Schroer said in his November letter to legislators. The $15 million will be allocated to the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority, which would own and operate the Oak Ridge Airport, pending FAA approval. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Business, Business, East Tennessee Technology Park, Federal, Front Page News, Government, Knoxville, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge, Roane County, Slider, State, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Aeronautics Economic Development Fund, airport, Appalachian Regional Commission, ARC, Bill Haslam, Bill Marrison, Billy Stair, Blair Road, Community Reuse Organization of East Tennessee, CROET, DOE, Downtown Island, East Tennessee Technology Park, FAA, Federal Aviation Administration, haul road, Heritage Center, John C. Schroer, John Ragan, K-25 site, Manhattan Project National Historical Park, McGhee Tyson, Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority, MKAA, National Program of Integrated Airport Systems, Oak Ridge airport, Oak Ridge City Council, Randy McNally, Roane County Commission, Roane County Courthouse, Steve Kelley, Tennessee Aeronautics Commission, Tennessee Department of Transportation, Tennessee General Assembly, Tennessee Valley Authority, U.S. Department of Energy

Environmental assessment for Oak Ridge airport finds no significant impact

Posted at 2:54 pm March 1, 2016
By John Huotari 3 Comments

Oak Ridge Airport Development Plan

The Heritage Center airport development plan is pictured above in a file image from August 2015. (Cropped image from DOE Draft Environmental Assessment)

 

An environmental assessment has been completed for the transfer of 170 acres at Heritage Center for a general aviation airport in west Oak Ridge, and the assessment found no significant impact, officials said Tuesday.

The assessment was completed by the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management. The land would be transferred to the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority.

In August, officials said conditions are subject to change, but plans then called for starting construction on the airport at the former K-25 site in 2018. An estimate at that time said the airport could cost between $30 million and $40 million.

The airport would have a 5,000-foot runway that would accommodate general aviation aircraft including corporate jets, private airplanes, and emergency medical services aircraft. A development plan shows the airport at the south side of Heritage Center along Oak Ridge Turnpike, or State Route 58. [Read more…]

Filed Under: East Tennessee Technology Park, Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge Office, Slider, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: airport, Becky Huckaby, Bill Marrison, DOE, Downtown Island, general aviation airport, Heritage Center, Jeff Smith, K-25 site, McGhee Tyson, Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority, MKAA, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, Sue Cange, U.S. Department of Energy

Council to get update on airport this evening

Posted at 3:09 pm September 22, 2015
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Airport Development Plan

The Heritage Center airport development plan is pictured above. (Cropped image from DOE Draft Environmental Assessment)

 

The City Council will get an update on the proposed general aviation airport in west Oak Ridge during a work session this evening.

The update will be given by Billy Stair, public affairs consultant for the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority.

The airport could cost $30-$40 million, and construction could start in 2018, according to a current timeline and construction estimate. The airport would include a 5,000-foot runway and be built at the front side of Heritage Center, the former K-25 site.

The Oak Ridge airport would the third for the MKAA, which would own the site. The other two are McGhee Tyson in Blount County and Downtown Island in Knoxville. The Oak Ridge airport would be a reliever airport and help relieve congestion at the other two airports. [Read more…]

Filed Under: East Tennessee Technology Park, Front Page News, Government, Meetings and Events, Oak Ridge, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: airport, Anderson County Chamber of Commerce, Billy Stair, Central Services Complex, City Council, DOE, Downtown Island, environmental assessment, Heritage Center, K-25, McGhee Tyson, Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority, MKAA, Oak Ridge, property transfer, Rick Meredith, U.S. Department of Energy

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Classifieds

Public Notice: NNSA announces no significant impact of Y-12 Development Organization operations at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

ADFAC seeks contractors for five homes

Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties (ADFAC) is a non-profit community based agency, … [Read More...]

Public notice: Draft environmental assessment for Y-12 Development Organization at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

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