By BILL SHEA
Messenger staff writer
Keeping the Fort Dodge Regional Airport open in the next fiscal year will cost $536,778, according to a budget proposal presented Monday.
Rhonda Chambers, the airport's director of aviation, told the City Council that revenue generated at the airport will cover 63 percent of that budget. That revenue comes from landing fees and rents. Property tax money in the amount of $196,566 will be used to balance the airport's budget.
Chambers said the Iowa Department of Transportation did a study which showed the Fort Dodge Regional Airport has a $36.2 million annual economic impact on the community.
This year, a $5 million runway rehabilitation project and a $200,000 upgrade of the apron where general aviation planes park will be completed.
Chambers said she didn't have any information on when Great Lakes Airlines will replace Delta Air Lines at the airport. That change is expected to happen this year.
Contact Bill Shea at (515) 573-2141 or bshea@messengernews.net