GAINESVILLE, FL September 19, 2013– The Gainesville Regional Airport will receive millions of dollars in funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation in the coming fiscal year for a taxiway and apron project. The City of Gainesville has been awarded a $2,487,157 discretionary grant to rehabilitate the taxiway and construct a new connector to runway 11-29, the main commercial runway. An additional $1,790,270 in Federal Aviation Authority entitlement funds from the Airport Trust Fund will help complete the $4.7 million project.
The project includes repaving the airport’s main commercial taxiway, replacing lighting and signage, relocating a connector between the taxiway and apron.
“The new connector to the taxiway is important to the safety of pilots traversing from apron, to taxiway to runway,” says airport CEO Allan Penksa. “The connector is also the first step in expanding the apron to our west, allowing for safer passenger boarding.”
The airport has also been approved for a $170,000 grant from the Florida Department of Transportation for parking lot improvements and a smaller grant for improvements to the airport’s general aviation terminal.
Anderson Colombia of Lake City won the bid for the taxiway and apron project with a bid amount of $4,292,821.70. There are additional costs for engineering and project inspection and testing services to be provided by URS, Inc. out of their Lake City office. Total eligible project costs are expected to be $4,753,196.40. The FAA pays for 90% of all eligible project costs. FDOT will also contribute $237,660.00.
Work on the projects could begin as soon as November of this year and continue for about 7 months.
