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Carbon County approves 10-year hangar lease with Utah State University for aviation maintenance program
Summary
Carbon County commissioners approved a 10-year lease with Utah State University to house an Aviation Maintenance Technician program in a new airport hangar; USU will pay $500,000 up front and the county will hold the funds in an airport fund pending the building’s future disposition.
Carbon County commissioners approved a 10-year lease agreement with Utah State University to house USU’s Aviation Maintenance Technician (AMT) program in a new hangar at the county airport.
The lease was presented by Jade Powell, a grant administrator with the Southeastern Regional Development Agency, who said the hangar building is scheduled to be complete in mid-May and USU hopes to enroll students in fall 2025 pending Federal Aviation Administration certification and completion of coursework.
Powell said the hangar will be owned and managed by Carbon County, with Utah State University as the lessee under the 10-year arrangement that reflects the university’s matching contribution to the construction. She told commissioners USU will pay a lump sum of $500,000 up front; county staff said that money will be held in an airport fund rather than the county general fund. At the end of the 10-year term, the up-front payment may be applied toward purchase of the building if USU elects to buy it, but the county must notify the Economic Development Administration (EDA) because the EDA’s grant agreement includes terms about the project’s useful life (described in the meeting as 20–25 years).
Commissioners said the new hangar and associated instruction space are significant improvements to the airport and praised the mix of federal, state and university funding that made the project possible. County attorneys and EDA counsel reviewed the lease, Powell said, and proponents described the arrangement as consistent with both USU and EDA requirements. A motion to approve the lease was made and seconded and the commission voted in favor; the chair announced the motion passed.
Details recorded in the meeting: the lease term is 10 years, USU will provide a $500,000 upfront payment to be placed in an airport fund, the hangar construction completion target is mid-May, and student enrollment is anticipated for fall 2025 contingent on FAA certification. Commissioners and staff noted that if USU does not purchase the building at term, the county would determine the next steps but must inform the EDA because of grant conditions tied to useful life.
