FAA approves Middleton ALP; drainage study and taxiway rehab advance, commission to draft community‑use policy

Staff updated the commission on infrastructure and planning steps on Jan. 8: the Federal Aviation Administration and BOA have approved the airport layout plan (ALP) and the document has been posted on the city's website. The BOA also issued a notice to proceed on a drainage study; Mead Hunt will serve as consultant for the multi‑month study that will include field work, modeling and a final report for commission review.

The taxiway rehabilitation project is in about 90% plan development; staff expects 100% plans by the end of the month to take to BOA for final sign‑off and subsequent bid authorization. Rich said some taxiway radiuses will need pavement work to comply with recent FAA updates, which may extend closure times for the taxiway while the work is done; staff said the runway itself is not expected to be affected.

On community use, Commissioner Charles asked for a formal policy to clarify how the airport is used for community events. Staff said FAA grant assurances constrain some uses (for example, closing a runway for a drag race would not be allowed), but hangars and terminal conference rooms can be made available for civic groups, often at no cost if the terminal is not city‑owned with FAA funding. Commissioners asked staff to gather examples from peer airports and return a draft policy that codifies prior practice and clarifies notification for hangar neighbors, signage and permits.

What’s next: staff will post the ALP online, complete plan submissions for taxiway rehab, proceed with the drainage/hangar study scope and draft a community‑use policy for future meetings.