Council hears Lunken Field update as leaders weigh runway, fees and customs facility

City council received a detailed briefing from the Department of Transportation and Engineering on Lincoln Airport (commonly known as Lunken Field), touching on operations, recent capital work, proposed development and a timeline for a permanent Customs and Border Protection facility.

Interim Department Director Greg Long and Division Manager Jamie Adrosa told council the airport recorded a little over 22,000 annual operations in the last two years (about 335 operations per day) and that the airport operates as an enterprise fund that receives no city operating transfers. "Our net operating income, in fiscal year 2024, ended positively at a little bit over $600,000," Adrosa said.

Adrosa said the airport completed an updated Airport Layout Plan — the first since 1989 — and described the Airport Capital Improvement Program (ACIP) items now in planning, including drainage work, taxiway rehabilitation and construction of a full-length Taxiway Bravo. Runway decommissioning was presented as a completed action: Adrosa said Runway 3L/21R was permanently closed on 07/11/2024 because the pavement condition required full reconstruction and funds were insufficient. That decommissioning project totaled about $1.5 million; the airport received an FAA grant for a little more than $1.3 million and provided a 10 percent local match split…