***Original published in South Mountain Press, March 1, 2019***
Plans to Repave Erickson’s Airport Runway Ramp Up
With the anticipated Infrastructure Canada grant window expected to open sometime this spring, the Rural Municipality of Clanwilliam-Erickson is busy marshalling all efforts towards snagging their piece of the monies earmarked for rural infrastructure spending. Specifically, the Municipal Airport runway is in desperate need of repaving.
For those readers unfamiliar with the story of Erickson Municipal Airport (aka Neilson Field or by the Canadian aerodrome identifier CKQ6), here is some background on the facility.
In 1974, the quarter of land for the airport was bought through the Erickson Chamber of Commerce from Mrs. Ethel Sloane (née Neilson). A 2800 foot runway was built and the rest of the quarter grew canola and alfalfa. Interesting note, the proceeds from the agriculture sales were enough to pay off the property loan. Also that year, the Scandinavia Community Club transferred the old Scandinavia school (built in 1925 and closed in 1968) to the airport where it is still used as the Administration building.
Since the opening, the airport has been run by Flying Club members with oversight from the Airport Commission whose representatives come from the Club and Council.
In 1984, a Transport Canada grant was used to create the present 3000 by 75 foot asphalt, East/West oriented runway, taxiway, apron, and lighting.
With time, facilities at the airport grew to include aerodrome lighting upgrades, seven hangars for several private aircraft, on-site aircraft fueling and tie downs, and admin services for visiting pilots.
Presently, the Flying Club has 25 members and a Club Piper Cherokee. One of the highlights of the year is when the Club holds their long running Father’s Day Fly-In Breakfast held in conjunction with Erickson’s Little Valley Jamboree. Average attendance is about 300 people and up to 30 aircraft.
The Flying Club members volunteer many hours to keep the airport operating. They receive a small, yearly $2,400 Manitoba Airport Assistance Program grant to assist in the continued maintenance and operation of the airport. They own and operate the fueling facilities and provide fuel call-out services free of charge. Up until recently, they were also doing the grass cutting and snow clearing but the RM has started helping with those duties.
Now since the runway has not received much in the way of surface maintenance other than some crack filling through the RM, in 2017, it was recognized by the Airport Commission that the runway would need a major rehabilitation. September 2017, RM Council authorized WSP Engineering Services to study the issue at a cost of $9,786 + GST. The report came back recommending full replacement of the asphalt and sub-surface. Failure of the present runway was described as ‘imminent’ and the cost to replace was pegged at $1.2 million.
So here is the literal Million Dollar Question. How does a small RM come up with the cash to fix a runway that is already reported to be damaging aircraft propellers and fuselage?
First, the RM does have an Airport Reserve Fund that is sitting at approximately $50,000.
Next, the RM at their last Council meeting, discussed funding formulas in order to raise a $100,000 debenture to help pay for the project.
Also, surrounding communities have been asked for help and support. For example, last week a 10 person Flying Club delegation make a presentation to Harrison Park Council. They asked for and were promised a Letter of Support from Council. They also made the argument that since Onanole and area receives indirect economic benefits due to the airport, then perhaps it would be in the Harrison Park’s interests to also put a sum of money into the repaving project. Council is deferring that decision until after upcoming budget deliberations.
Another avenue that has been pursued, was to enlist the help of the local MLA, Greg Nesbitt. Mr. Nesbitt was a long time member of the Shoal Lake Airport Authority before his political career. In 2017, he was instrumental in helping that airport with their $342,201 runway rehabilitation.
In Mr. Nesbitt’s words, “I will endorse Erickson’s airport runway project with political support and my expertise. The project will need government funding and I can help the RM navigate the process. But they have to realize that government monies are meant as a hand up, not a hand out. There needs to be local buy-in and backing.”
But even with local goodwill and fundraising, the cost of the runway project to the RM would be prohibitive. The bulk of the funding will have to be borne by higher levels of government. This is where Infrastructure Canada and the Province can assist to keep the prop spinning.
Last summer, the Province announced the signing of a bilateral agreement that will provide more than $1.1 billion in federal funding through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) for infrastructure projects. It is a cost-shared program that will support infrastructure needs throughout Manitoba over the next 10 years. Also last summer, they called for Manitoba RMs to submit infrastructure Expressions of Interest (EOI) in order to prioritize infrastructure projects for 2019 to 2023.
The RM was able to submit an airport related EOI last fall as the runway rehabilitation would be eligible under the program’s Rural and Northern Communities Infrastructure Stream (RNCIS). The projected funding formula would be up to 60% Federal Funding, up to 33.3% Provincial Funding, and the balance covered by the RM.
After contacting the Infrastructure Canada Ottawa office, they did not provide a timeline for when the 2019/2020 grant application process would commence. The last word was the vague indication of sometime this spring. Depending on the timing of all the pieces falling into place, it might be challenging to catch this year’s construction season. Plus there is zero guarantee of the project making the cut and receiving either Federal or Provincial Funding.
Sadly, if the situation is not rectified soon, the runway pavement will continue to deteriorate until it becomes unsafe and unusable. At that point, Erickson’s aviation community and associated economic benefits will sputter and stall.
Blair is a personification of a ‘Jack of All Trades and Master of None’. He has held several careers and has all the T-shirts. Time to add the title Blogger to the list.