Mid-Valley Airport runway construction to begin Aug. 1
“Orange barricades blocked off Sugar Cane Drive permanently this month north of the Mid-Valley Airport. Wings came and went with somewhat more frequency than in the past. Property beyond the runway remained caught in eminent domain proceedings to expand the runway.
And contractors are finally ready to begin expansion construction using a grant the city asked for seven years ago.
Crews plan to break ground Aug. 1 on a 1,000-foot runway lengthening that will also add five feet to its width, rehabilitate taxiways, extend runway lights and install drainage. The Texas Department of Transportation’s aviation division will cover 90 percent of the $4.7 million cost, with the city of Weslaco and the Economic Development Corp. splitting the remaining $471,300.
Airport Director George Garrett said the additional room would allow the airport to accommodate corporate airplanes carrying up to 20 people for business ventures in the Rio Grande Valley, as well as military aircraft in the event of a crisis.
The project faced some delays and will be completed in two phases due to complications acquiring some of the land needed for the lengthening, City Manager Leo Olivares told commissioners at a meeting last week.
That involves a dispute with landowners who agreed to sell their property for the project, but only in its entirety. Because only a portion of it was needed, the state has begun proceedings to seize it through an eminent domain condemnation process.”
Findell, Elizabeth. Valley Star 19 July 2014.