By WMBD and Blake Haas
BLOOMINGTON – U.S. Representative of the 13th District Rodney Davis and U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood announced Tuesday that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has awarded the Central Illinois Regional Airport (CIRA) in Bloomington a large grant.
The $2.3 million grant will go towards pavement rehabilitation.
“Investing in our local airports is just one example of this Congress and administration’s commitment to infrastructure,” Davis said. “CIRA is a critical part of growing Bloomington-Normal’s economy and bringing new jobs to the area. This grant will ensure necessary upgrades are made to improve service. I was proud to support major transportation investments in the last spending bill and continue to work with the administration to rebuild this country’s infrastructure.
“This latest award will allow the Bloomington-Normal Airport Authority to continue its rehabilitation efforts to repair over a mile of Taxiway E and 58,000 square yards of the tarmac. Improvement projects like these helps facilitate safer and more efficient operations not only for the ground crew, but for pilots and passengers as well,” LaHood said. “Year after year, CIRA hosts hundreds of thousands of passengers on commercial flights and tens of thousands of aircraft operations. Efficient ground operations are critical for air travel and improvements such as these will allow CIRA to continue to be on the forefront of bringing visitors and business to the Bloomington-Normal community.”
This $2.3 million grant builds off of the $1.1 million grant received last year for taxiway upgrades and repairs.
Blake Haas can be reached at [email protected].
