Construction pushed back: Clinton Municipal Airport (KCWI), Clinton, Iowa

CLINTON — Weather-related setbacks have pushed completion of the Clinton Municipal Airport renovation to late August at the earliest. Construction originally was slated to be completed in March, airport manager Mike Nass said.

“It’s been a wet spring more than anything,” Nass added during Monday’s Airport Commission meeting at the terminal west of Clinton. “With the extreme weather we had we had to delay it. Then weather in March-April set the project more behind.”

The city hired Clinton Engineering last fall for the renovation, a project that included a new terminal and a storage hangar. Similar to other projects in the city, a record-cold winter followed by a stormy spring and windy summer caused most of the delays.

After the winter delayed completion, Nass said he was hopeful to unveil the new hangar by May 10. Now, optimistically, the construction will be finished by the end of August, but more likely in early September.

“A lot of the delays were due to the severity,” commission member Dave Jacobson said. “Extreme cold weather. High winds. Rain.

Although unfinished, the new hangar already has hosted some occupants. The Quad-Cities International Airport underwent a runway makeover, bringing some company jets up north to Clinton County.

The hospitality, Nass said, encouraged some jet owners to consider CMA’s hangar when the projects are completed. The planes will be removed from the hangar so crews can finish the concrete flooring.

Although the setbacks create less-than-ideal circumstances, Nass and other airport supporters are still eager to unveil the new-look airport.

The delays, at this point, haven’t increased costs to the city, Nass said. Initial cost estimates were for a $1.9 million project, with $637,000 grant funded by the Iowa Department of Transportation.

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Clinton Airport Commission members Lester Shields (left) and Dave Jacobson hear a construction report from municipal airport manager Mike Nass (third from left) during their Monday commission meeting. 
 Photo Courtesy:  Brenden West/Clinton Herald 

City Airport Commission members tour the project. The project, originally was slated for completion in March, received another weather-related setback. 

Photo Courtesy:  Brenden West/Clinton Herald