County funds to help airport meet grant's local match

Thursday, January 17, 2013

While the Putnam County Airport Board's 36/18 Project to raise money for the runway improvements is ongoing, the Putnam County Council just gave a big boost to the effort.

On Tuesday, the council approved an appropriation of $12,000 to the airport to cover the remainder of the local match amount to the more than $3.7 million in state and local funding for runway improvements.

The Airport Board recently announced the 36/18 Project (named after Runway 36-18, which it will benefit) in which individual and business donors have the chance to sponsor each of the 5,400 feet of the runway for $5 per foot.

The project was jumpstarted by a $10,000 grant from the Putnam County Community Foundation with a goal of raising the final $27,000 needed for the project.

However, with a deadline of May for raising the local money, the $12,000 from the county's rainy day fund ensures the deadline will be met.

Airport officials have agreed to pay the money back to the rainy day fund in two payments in 2014. The funds will come from the cash-rent payments on the farmland owned by the airport.

The council also approved a pair of grant money appropriations to the airport in the total amount of $2,700.

Anyone interested in donating to the 36/18 Project may contact Airport Board president J.R. Scott at 721-7260 or vice president Duane Skoog at 363-2093.

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