Ravalli County Commissioners Approve Local Grants for Airport Apron Expansion

While a large portion of federal funding is still pending, Ravalli County Commissioners agreed to an assortment of local grants for the Ravalli County Airport apron expansion project last week.

If roughly $1.63 million in funding from the Federal Aviation Administration is approved, construction on the new apron could begin as early as this fall, according to Robert Peccia and Associates Engineer Lance Bowser.

On May 29, the Ravalli County Board of Commissioners approved the recommendation of Millennium Construction and Consulting’s apron expansion bid for $2,212,381 to the FAA. The apron expansion project will increase staging space for Forest Service full-time single engine airtankers, helicopters and rotary-wing aircrafts.

Millennium Construction and Consulting’s bid covers the second phase of the expansion project, which involves constructing additional staging space for the Forest Service fire support fleet. Bowser told county commissioners that Millennium contractors expressed interest in starting the project in the fall, but that the official project deadline was July 31, 2026.

In their loan grant application, the Ravalli County Airport expressed need for expansion to better accommodate Forest Service aircrafts, who primarily use the airport during fire season.

“Construction of the apron expansion is needed to provide safe separation of itinerant aircraft and the USFS fire support fleet, consisting of Type I Helicopters ( Chinook, Sky Crane) and Single Engine Air Tanker (SEAT) ( AT-802, AB 690) aircraft, during active fire season and peak summer usage. The Forest Service has voiced serious concern about the lack of space to safely meet their needs and mission,” reads the application.

The bid recommendation approved by commissioners at their meeting also stated that the “apron has been deficient in the last five (5) years as the Ravalli County airport has seen a sizable increase in larger C category aircraft traffic utilizing the airport throughout seasonal peak operations.”

Ravalli County Commissioners’ recommendation of Millennium's bid now awaits approval from the FAA, who are anticipated to award a $1,631,467 grant. The project totals a cost of $2.67 million, and according to Bowser, would have been eligible for $2.5 million in FAA funding.

“It’s a $2.67 million total project,” Bowser told commissioners at the meeting. “If there were FAA funds available, it would be eligible for up to 95% federal funding. It would be eligible for up to $2.5 million federal funding. However, you don’t have that much available, you don’t have the grant funds available.”

Project Cost

A summary of grant funding for the Ravalli County Airport expansion project included coverage from the Montana Department of Transportation's Montana Aeronautics Grant, The United States Forest Service and the FAA.

Because of FAA funding availability and limited grant funding from Montana Aeronautics, Ravalli County will be responsible for a $600,000 shortfall after the project’s completion.

County commissioners approved $346,441 in Montana Aeronautics grants at their meeting on May 29. They also approved a $93,496 grant from the Forest Service as well as a shared grant opportunity of $450,000 with Liberty County.

Funds from Montana Aeronautic grants will not be transferred to the county until July, according to Bowser.

“It’s exciting, it really is,” Bowser told commissioners. “It’s a cool project and it’s really fun to see this airport grow.”

County commissioners expressed similar sentiments about the project.

“The number one reason we told the public why we were doing that was safety and our firefighting capabilities,” Commissioner Jeff Burrows said at the meeting. “I think it’s a sincere gesture to go and prove that capability here. It’s going to be a cool project once it’s done.”

Bowser and commissioners discussed the possibility of rearranging apron availability for the Forest Service, if phase two construction began in the fall. Bowser said that staging space for the Forest Service will be especially limited while construction is underway, but that the county would “make it work.”

"If they end up pushing into fire season this year, I'm gonna have to talk with the airport about closing down some taxiways or something to give the Forest Service a home for some of their helicopters this season," Bowser told commissioners. “But, we’ll make it work, because the sooner the better."

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