Friday, April 26, 2024
Architectural rendering of the new terminal building for Granbury Regional Airport.
With the years-long airport expansion project nearing completion, the city will soon begin construction of a new terminal building.
At its regular meeting on Tuesday, April 19, the Granbury City Council approved the hiring Christensen Building Group to be the project’s CMR, or Construction Manager at Risk.
According to staff, a new terminal building will be needed once the new runway becomes active. That is expected to happen by Dec. 20. The runway, 5,200 feet long and 75 feet wide, will be able to accommodate virtually all business-type jets.
The new runway is part of a $32 million expansion project. About half the cost was paid through a grant from the Texas Department of Transportation’s Aviation Division.
The Federal Aviation Administration approved the project in 2013. Improvements have been done in phases.
The airport’s current terminal may be converted into office space or even a restaurant.
The building sits on what soon will become the old runway. At 3,603 feet long, the runway is the shortest among similar airports in the region. It will be converted to a taxiway.
According to staff reports, a new Fixed Base Operator, or terminal building, needs to be in place as soon as possible.
An FBO provides various services at an airport, including fueling, tie-downs, parking, maintenance and flight instruction.
Aviation Director Pat Stewart told the council that the city received four bids for the 4,000-square-feet terminal building and staff determined that Christensen was the best choice.
Total estimated construction cost is $2.1 million.
In the coming weeks, city staff will bring to the City Council for approval the new access road project as well as water and sewer infrastructure to support the airport. The cost of the Archer Court and utilities project is estimated to be $3.3 million.
The council previously hired PGAL as the consultant for the terminal building design with funding coming from the Airport Reserve Fund. Stewart said that the design is 99% complete.
He said that it will have a parking lot entrance and a porte cochere where travelers can unload their bags from vehicles during inclement weather.
Stewart stated that the architectural design is similar to the new police station on the Loop 567 extension, which is expected to open within a few weeks.
He noted that over the past several years, expenses at the airport have been cut at the behest of City Manager Chris Coffman and that the airport is now “operating largely on its own” without financial help from the city.
Stewart said that Phase 2 of the expansion project, which involved earthwork, was completed four months ahead of schedule and under budget. The current phase, Phase 3, is on schedule and within budget, he said.
Councilman Steven Vale and Mayor Jim Jarratt praised Stewart for his management of the airport.
Stewart said that the current economic impact of the city’s public-use, general aviation airport is around $17 million annually, according to figures provided by TxDOT Aviation eight or nine years ago. He said that every 10 years, the state agency hires a university and an engineering firm to conduct economic surveys of federally funded airports in Texas.
Stewart stated that once the new runway is open for use, he expects the economic impact to Granbury and Hood County to be “two or three times that much.”
