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Airport authority asks for small funding share for parking access; Des Moines County supervisors table decision
Summary
Chad Bird, Burlington city manager, asked Des Moines County to share a small funding gap — about $6,492 — for a change order to pave an access area at the Southeast Iowa Regional Airport; the board debated whether the work is airport infrastructure or recreational and voted to table the request for further review.
Chad Bird, Burlington city manager, presented a change order request from the Southeast Iowa Regional Airport Authority to pave an access area serving a ball field and airport campus. The contractor’s change order totaled about $6,492; Bird said dividing the cost among the three member entities would amount to roughly $2,164 each.
County board members questioned whether the paving serves airport operations or primarily recreational uses for a ball field. One supervisor outlined the long‑standing local allocation formula for airport matches — roughly 13% Des Moines County, 12% West Burlington, and 75% Burlington — as context for cost‑sharing discussions. Several supervisors said the dollar amount is small but the principle of the allocation formula matters.
After discussion, a supervisor moved to table the funding decision until the following week to allow time for additional review; the motion was seconded and the board voted to table the item.
Why it matters: The change order is modest in dollar value but raises questions about cost‑allocation between regional partners and about whether improvements near recreational facilities should be county-supported under airport capital projects.
What happens next: The item was tabled for further consideration and will return to a future agenda for a final funding decision.
