Airport manager outlines layout plan, grants and fuel operations at Goldendale airport

Richard Lending presented an airport update to the Goldendale City Council, describing an airport layout plan the airport team wants the council to adopt and several capital projects they are pursuing. “We make a buck every gallon that goes through that hose,” Lending said, describing the airport’s current retail fuel margin and noting that Q2 fuel sales recorded on the city spreadsheet were small but that the fuel operation is intended to bring pilots into town.

Lending said the airport team is negotiating property acquisitions and easements with multiple landowners and is planning a multi‑phase runway widening project. He described phase 1 work as wetlands mitigation and planning, with phase 2 to bring in fill and grading; he said Washington State Department of Transportation grants have maximums (he mentioned $750,000) and that breaking a large project into smaller grant “bites” can improve funding prospects.

Lending told the council the airport needs lighting and weather systems upgrades. He said current lighting and PAPI approach lights are obsolete — manufacturers are out of business — and that the airport is seeking funding to replace them and to procure a modern automated weather-observation system (he referenced a product called SayWeather). He also said two parties have expressed interest in building hangars, including an A&P mechanic that could provide on‑site maintenance, but the airport still needs to identify suitable lots and taxiway access.

Councilmembers asked about advertising fuel availability and revenue. Lending said he updates online pilot flight‑planning services monthly with the airport’s fuel price and that those services are how transient pilots learn fuel availability. Sarah Kaczmarek and other staff agreed to produce a fund-level breakout showing airport expenditures paid from the general fund and fuel sales revenue the airport has collected to date.

Lending also noted local events tied to the airport: a balloon festival scheduled for the 12th–14th of the month with early-morning launches, and continued work on regulatory issues that affect certain grant eligibility distances. He told the council the airport team is pursuing multiple grant sources and will return with more details as grants and costs become firm.

No formal council vote was taken on airport projects at this meeting; council members expressed willingness to support leveraging city funds to secure matching grant dollars if needed and asked Lending and staff to follow up with cost estimates and grant‑application plans.