Richard Froese
South Peace News
Big Lakes County remains committed to extend the runway at the High Prairie Airport and other upgrades despite some provincial funding being up in the air.

At its regular meeting April 26, council approved a recommendation to complete the runway extension project as planned, assuming a $500,000 grant from the provincial Strategic Transportation Infrastructure Program – Community Airport Program, is approved.

Paving would coincide with the overlay project planned for Highway 2 in 2017.

“Because of the contract with the highway project, we won’t get any better price,” Reeve Ken Matthews says.

Tenders for the runway, lighting and access road upgrades closed Jan. 31, under the Alberta Transportation Highway 2 paving contract, states a report for CAO Roy Brideau.

“We’re not going to do anything until we get $500,000 and ownership of the airport,” Brideau says.

The county received a tender price of $2,164,478 for the entire project, including costs of engineering.

Currently, the county is in the process of taking over ownership of the airport from the Town of High Prairie, which has committed $100,000 to the project.

Council previously determined that the project would proceed only if funding could be secured for the project.

However, the deadline for the community airport program funding application was Feb. 3, 2017.

“We do not yet have confirmation of funding or industry support,” Brideau says.
“With only $2 million allocated to funding the program for the entire province for 2017, the chances of funding approval for the full amount are low.”

Brideau says each time he enquires about funding, program officials say the results are being further delayed.