Environmental Assessment Continues For Proposed Airport
The SCRAA Board met on Tuesday evening to hear about the environmental study currently underway on the proposed airport location.
Oskaloosa, Iowa – The South Central Regional Airport Agency met on June 23rd, 2015 in the council chambers at the Oskaloosa City Hall.
There, the board heard concerns from residents about the proposed airport and how it may impact their lives.
Alicia Groenendyk, a rural Mahaska County resident, spoke about how she believes the airport will impact her and her family. “I can’t see any of these proud farmers wanting to sell their precious ground to you guys for an airport that’s not going to make money, that’s not going to benefit the community, and I can’t see jobs coming.”
Recently, individuals along Highway 163 between Oskaloosa and Pella have added printed signage that further displays their displeasure with the proposed project.
Jerry Searle, an airport planner contracted by the SCRAA, provided the board with an update on the Federal Aviation Planning Studies. The environment assessment is currently ongoing and is scheduled to be completed by the end of the 2015 calendar year.
Searle began his overview of the Purpose and Need portion of the study. The purpose and need portion of the project states what the problem is and what the solution to that problem is. “That’s the basis of this project.”
“The goal is to construct a new airport to accommodate the aeronautical demand that’s been approved by FAA, based on the aviation forecast,” said Searle. “It will ultimately result in the closing of two existing airports and reducing the environmental footprint.”
“That’s the purpose of this particular project,” explained Searle.
Nearly 30 federal and state agencies were contacted for their comment during the environment assessment. Those comments were then used in building the environmental assessment for the proposed airport site.
“It’s not the environmental consequences, it’s the range of alternatives,” said Searle.
Currently, the archeologist is looking over the potential site for any potential archeological impacts.
A public hearing, as part of the environmental assessment process, is tentatively scheduled to happen towards the end of the 2015 calendar year.
Board chairperson Jim Hansen updated the board about a visit where he, board members Joe Warrick and Dave Barnes, and the city managers from Pella and Oskaloosa, all traveled to Kansas City to meet with the FAA on April 15th. The FAA provided information to the two cities on the process of releasing land of the current airports to help fund the purchase of other lands that may be needed for the new airport.
“I came away believing it was a very productive meeting,” Hansen said of the group’s visit with the FAA.
Hansen said that he also presented information to the Iowa DOT Commission at their meeting in Council Bluffs. The 63 by-pass committee was also in attendance at that meeting, which is now being joined in the DOT planning of a south-east connector for Oskaloosa.
No specific date for the next meeting was set, but it could be sooner than the required 3 months, in order to allow continued planning on the environment study.
