Northern Colorado, Boulder Valley airports get FAA grants for safety improvements

A handful of Northern Colorado and Boulder Valley airports in the last couple of months have been chosen to receive thousands in grants from the Federal Aviation Administration.

This month, the FAA announced $9.7 million in grants to Colorado airports, including $513,599 to the Greeley-Weld County Airport to improve its apron, where passengers load onto parked planes. That was in addition to $10 million in grants the FAA had awarded in June, in which $609,290 went to the Northern Colorado Regional Airport in Loveland to improve its taxiway, and $315,000 that was granted to the Vance Brand Municipal Airport in Longmont to install perimeter fencing. Erie Municipal Airport received a $380,382 grant to improve its taxiway and apron.

The funds were granted as a part of the FAA’s Airport Improvement Program, which funds airport infrastructure projects such as runways, taxiways, airport signage, airport lighting, and airport markings, according to a news release.

Airports are entitled to a certain amount of AIP funding each year, based on passenger volume, the release stated.

U.S. Sens. John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet, both Democrats from Colorado, lauded the funding. Hickenlooper reports he helped negotiate the bipartisan infrastructure law, which funds the Airport Improvement Program.

“Colorado’s airports are a lifeline to rural communities,” Hickenlooper said in a news release. “Our Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is repairing roads and runways at airports across the state to keep those communities connected.”

Bennet added in the release, “I’m grateful DOT is supporting Colorado’s airports as they work to meet our state’s changing needs. These dollars will help improve safety and capacity so our airports can better connect our communities and fuel our economy.”

To see the full list of FAA grants, click here.

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