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Event at Denison House offers lesson in 18th-century medicine

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Institute Insights: Getting more than vegetables at the Farmers Market

<p>A rarely discussed Luzerne County-owned property &#8212; the 110-acre Wyoming Valley Airport in Forty Fort and Wyoming &#8212; will receive some overdue attention, officials say.</p><p>A master plan is underway to formulate recommendations on hangar and parking expansion, options for the realignment of existing runways and the renovation and maintenance of terminal and hangar structures.</p><p>McFarland-Johnson Inc., an engineering company based in Binghamton, New York, was hired to complete the plan for $249,206, with a target February 2020 completion. The Federal Aviation Administration is covering 95 percent of the plan cost, the contract says.</p><p>&#8220;I believe the Forty Fort airport can really be something that the county can be very proud of,&#8221; county Manager C. David Pedri told council last week.</p><p>Completion of a master plan will allow the county to seek federal funding for more amenities at the facility, he said.</p><p>The plan also will suggest the &#8220;best course of action&#8221; to continue developing the airport and &#8220;identify the key critical issues the airport faces in the next 20 years,&#8221; the scope of services says.</p><p>The last airport plan update was completed in 2002, it said, although several county officials said at last week&#8217;s meeting they believed the date was more recent.</p><p>&#8220;Since that time, a number of critical growth and operational issues have surfaced that need to be assessed,&#8221; the scope said.</p><p>Two projects at the airport proposed in 2017 have been on hold because the master plan must be completed to pursue FAA funding, officials said.</p><p>Those projects, according to the county&#8217;s capital plan:</p><p>&#8226; A 10,000 gallon fuel tank replacement budgeted at $100,000</p><p>&#8226; Airport terminal masonry restoration estimated at $50,000</p><p>The county also recently sought proposals from engineering firms to design a taxiway, gas pump and apron rehabilitation. Three firms submitted technical proposals by the May deadline, but an award has not yet been posted on the county website.</p><p>Councilman Harry Haas last week sought a status on the 12-member airport advisory board, which has seven seats that have been vacant for years due to a lack of citizen applicants.</p><p>Council Chairman Tim McGinley and Vice Chairman Eugene Kelleher said several residents recently expressed interest in the seats.</p><p>&#8220;If so, for the first time in a long while, we will have enough for a quorum on the advisory board,&#8221; Kelleher said.</p><p>Pedri also noted the county controller&#8217;s office is completing an audit to determine if all airport finances are in order.</p><p>Established in 1929, the airport requires little county general fund subsidy because the state and federal government have funded most capital projects, officials have said. The county also receives a portion of revenue from fuel sales at the facility.</p><p>Valley Aviation runs the facility as the fixed base operator, and Pedri said the company has been an &#8220;excellent steward of the facility&#8221; for years.</p><p>Some taxpayers have suggested selling the airport over the last two decades, but county officials have maintained it&#8217;s worth keeping for economic development and quality of life.</p><p>Pedri said he believes the facility is viewed as an asset, although he wants to step up marketing of the site.</p><p>&#8220;There are only so many of these smaller types of airports available for people who have planes,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We just have to find out if we&#8217;re utilizing it to the fullest extent.&#8221;</p><p>The county also owns an office building &#8212; the West Side Annex &#8212; near the airport complex along Route 11 and recently took possession of a former military building that has been vacant for years, Pedri said. Forty Fort recently assumed management of the county&#8217;s adjacent 35-acre sports complex as part of an overall plan to make the borough a recreation center.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Planes line the lot at the Wyoming Valley Airport. A master plan is underway to identify future needs at the Luzerne County-owned complex located in Forty Fort and Wyoming. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/web1_TTL051417hometownfortyfort1ad.jpg</photo0><caption0>Planes line the lot at the Wyoming Valley Airport. A master plan is underway to identify future needs at the Luzerne County-owned complex located in Forty Fort and Wyoming. </caption0><photoCredit0>File photo </photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Jennifer Learn-Andes</p><p>jandes@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Future planned for Luzerne County-owned Wyoming Valley Airport