Funding made available for design of airport expansion. Plattsburgh International Airport (KPBG), New York.

PLATTSBURGH — Federal funding has been cleared to begin the expansion of Plattsburgh International Airport.

"This is the first step in getting the terminal expanded, and we are on our way," Airport Manager Tom Long said.

The $760,000 will go towards the preliminary design of the expanded terminal and an environmental review.

"It will tell us how much square footage we will need, how many jet bridges, how many ticket counters, baggage-claim areas and how much parking and things like that," Long said.

Clinton County opted to expand the airport last year, after the number of flights kept increasing annually. The airport opened in 2007 on the flight line of the former Plattsburgh Air Force Base.

Direct flights are offered to Florida and South Carolina, and connecting flights go to the Caribbean as well as provide daily service to Boston.

ANOTHER SECURITY LINE

There were about 100,000 enplanements in 2010 and about 62,000 through the end of June this year to put the airport on pace to exceed last year's figures.

There were only about 2,000 enplanements at the former Clinton County Airport in its last year of operation in 2006.

With the dramatic increase in traffic, the terminal at times can become very crowded, causing passengers to wait for long periods to check in and clear security.

A larger baggage-claim area was added two years ago to ease the scrum that often occurred after arrivals as weary passengers fought to get their luggage off the small conveyor belt.

In another move to alleviate congestion, the U.S. Transportation Security Agency is in the midst of adding another security line to expedite screening.

WORK STARTS SOON

The county also began to charge for parking this March and is on pace to generate about $800,000 in parking revenue this year.

Last month, officials learned that funding would be available for the preliminary design and environmental review, and that became a reality on Thursday.

"This is the money we'd been waiting on, and we are very happy to get it," County Administrator Michael Zurlo said.

Work on the preliminary design of the expansion will be done by McFarland Johnson of Binghamton and national airport-design firm URS Corp. of San Francisco.

Long said work should begin in the next few weeks and will take about six to 12 months.

'KEY FOR REGION'

The airport was built with about $40 million in funding from the federal Military Airport Program. The program is designed to aid communities that lost military installations.

The county is hopeful that more federal money will be available for the terminal expansion.

"Once we get the environmental review and the preliminary design done, there should be more funding for rest of the design and the actual terminal," Long said.

U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer (D-Brooklyn) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-Brunswick) both said the long-term plans for the airport are key for the region.

"Plattsburgh International is a cornerstone of the North Country economy, and these funds will only help cement that status," Schumer said in a news release.

Gillibrand said, "This is an important investment for Plattsburgh International. These federal dollars will help support long-term infrastructure upgrades to improve the airport and provide better air service for travelers."

Source:   http://pressrepublican.com