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Gadsden council approves submission of $2.832M federal grant for airport upgrades
Summary
Council unanimously approved submitting a $2.832 million Defense Community Infrastructure Program grant application to pay for airport infrastructure improvements at Northeast Alabama Regional Airport; officials said the grant is 100% federal with no local match and could support hangars and better fueling operations.
Gadsden — The Gadsden City Council on June 16 voted to submit a $2.832 million Defense Community Infrastructure Program grant application to fund infrastructure improvements at Northeast Alabama Regional Airport.
Councilman Wilson, who presented the item, said the application would seek $2.832 million in federal funds and emphasized the grant requires no local match: "This is a $2.832 million worth of improvements to our regional airport, and this is a 100% federal grant with no match." He said the improvements are intended to pave the way for hangar construction and more efficient fueling operations that could attract aviation businesses to Gadsden.
Why it matters: If awarded, the grant could reduce local capital costs for airport upgrades and support economic development by making the airport more useful to private and commercial aviation firms. Council members suspended rules to consider the item as new business and adopted the resolution to submit the application the same day.
What the council recorded: Council moved and seconded to consider the resolution under new business and then voted to adopt the resolution by voice vote. Councilman Wilson described multiple improvement categories in summary during the presentation but did not read a detailed project list into the public record at the meeting; the grant award remains subject to federal approval.
Next steps: Airport and economic development staff will complete and submit the grant application to the federal agency; any award would require follow-up planning and contracting to implement the approved improvements.
