The Morris City Council has approved the last land purchase needed for the future Morris Municipal Airport runway extension.
The settlement agreement
approved by the council Monday was for about 70 acres north of the
airport. The city agreed on $1.6 million for the land, said Alderman
Julian Houston, Airport Committee chairman, after the meeting. The city
has been working on getting the land for about two years.
“It’s been a long battle, but it’s finally over and we can look to the future,” he said.
The
city plans to extend its north-south runway and taxiway to the north by
500 feet, making it 5,500 feet, to accommodate larger aircraft. The
extension also includes widening the runway from 75 to 100 feet and
overlaying it with more asphalt to accommodate heavier aircraft.
The
hope is to get started on the project in the early part of 2013, said
Houston. The tearing down of the old airport office building will be in
the next three weeks.
The city was given a federal grant of $3.5
million for property acquisition. When purchasing property for the
extension, the city is responsible for 5 percent, the state for 5
percent, and the FAA takes care of 90 percent of the cost.
The city has now spent about $2.95 million on land and has obtained about 80 acres.
The
remaining parcel for which the city needs to approve a settlement is
for air rights above Saratoga Cemetery, said Mayor Richard Kopczick
after the meeting.
In other business, the council also approved variances for Pilot Travel Centers.
The truck stop will be more than 11,000 square feet and is to be located on Illinois 47, north of Interstate 80.
It
will include fueling for both trucks and passenger vehicles, a Subway,
food mart, video gambling, trucker’s lounge and showers.
A
variance for a 90-foot sign was approved. The city’s municipal code
allows for 40-foot signs. The approval is pending the FAA’s
recommendation regarding the sign height, since the gas station is
located close to the Morris Municipal Airport and the sign is in
alignment with the airport runway. The company wanted a larger sign to
be seen from I-80.
http://www.morrisdailyherald.com
http://www.airnav.com/airport/C09
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