Abilene Regional Airport staff told the development board on Thursday they will use a construction‑manager‑at‑risk contracting method for the terminal expansion and renovation and expect to request a board recommendation in November.

Don Dawn, airport staff, said formal proposals for the CMAR role will be received the following day and that staff intends to bring a recommendation to the board at its November meeting. “That will and we'll be bringing that to the board, a selection to the board, in at the November meeting,” he said.

Dawn explained the airport plans to involve the construction manager during the latter half of the design phase so the contractor can advise on construction methods, materials and near‑real‑time cost estimates. He said the board’s intent is to begin phase 1—an expansion of the boarding area—by May. “My hope is that we can have this under construction. We start construction of phase 1 which is the boarding area expansion, by May,” he said.

Board members asked how the airport will remain operational during construction. A board member asked whether the city would designate someone to coordinate operations while work proceeds. Dawn said coordination is a key part of the CMAR process and that staff and the architect have already relayed operational constraints to potential contractors. “The airport does not stop. It's got to be open 7 days a week, probably about 21 hours a day or 20 hours a day,” he said. “It's not going to be pretty, it's going to be ugly, dusty, loud for sure, not comfortable at times. But we will be open every day, during construction.”

Staff described night work and work during low‑traffic terminal hours as part of the plan to limit disruption; they also cited the value of contractor input to avoid design choices that are difficult or expensive to build. The CMAR approach has been used on other city projects but, Dawn said, this is the first time the airport has tried it.

No formal selection or construction contract was approved at the meeting; staff said the board will review proposal evaluations and a recommendation next month.