Group approves garage for airport

PROCTORVILLE, Ohio -- The Kyova Interstate Planning Commission has endorsed a plan to build a parking garage and expand parking capacity at Tri-State Airport in Huntington from 536 spots to 922.

The $16.5 million project even has a greater impact considering nearly half of today's parking spots are located on dirt and grass near the main parking lot, said airport director Jerry Brienza.

"I don't think it's a matter of whether it's doable. I think that we have to do it at some point," he said.

The 922-spot, $16.5 million plan is the recommendation of Wilbur Smith and Associates -- the consulting firm hired last year to study parking needs at the airport. The firm presented its findings Friday at the Planning Commission's meeting in Proctorville, Ohio.

Brienza said the consulting firm's strategy calls for a 672-spot, four-story parking garage with a secondary parking lot accommodating about 250 vehicles. The garage would be across from the airport's main entrance. Its construction would require present-day parking to be relocated temporarily.

The $16.5 million price tag covers design, environmental work and construction. It also includes costs associated with relocating current parking lots, Brienza said.

Kyova Chairman Scott Bias and Brienza said the project will need funding from a variety of sources, including federal, state and local governments and businesses. They will tout it as a transportation initiative spurring economic development.

In addition to parking, the recommendations call for covered walkways between the garage and the main entrance. Ramps and elevators would replace outdoor stairwells, bringing the facility into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Bias and Brienza said the improvements are crucial steps in helping Tri-State Airport compete with airports in Lexington, Ky., Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio.

Both credited newer services, such as Allegiant Air flights to Florida, with increasing demand at Tri-State. Bias referred to the parking shortage as the "biggest obstacle" to continued growth.

"It's a good problem to have that you don't have enough parking, but a good problem can turn into a bad problem if you don't do something about it," said Bias, a Cabell County commissioner.

Expanded parking areas will complement efforts to extend the runway, which in turn attracts larger planes that can reach farther destinations. Both cited a federal report that indicates Tri-State is the sixth-fastest growing airport in the continental United States.

"We have to start acting like it," Brienza said of the distinction.

Friday's announcement was another step in a process that has been ongoing for about five years. Officials already have started discussions with the region's congressional delegation. Now they will use the firm's need-assessment study as a basis to seek funding for the project.

Brienza did not set forth a timeline. He speculated his airport authority would vote to start construction Sunday if the money was available.

"If we don't do it soon, we're going to start losing the passengers who have that decision to go to other airports," he said. "They have a place to park. Something as simple as that can drive them away."

The commission envisions aviation improvements as a way to enhance the region's reputation as an intermodal area complete with rail, river and highway assets.

The Herald-Dispatch

The Kyova Interstate Planning Commission has endorsed a plan to build a parking garage and expand parking capacity at Tri-State Airport in Huntington from 536 spots to 922.