CLEARFIELD – The Clearfield-Lawrence Airport learned what it will likely cost to build a parallel taxiway to runway 1-2 after opening bids for the work Tuesday.
HRI Inc. of State College was the low bid at $884,184, and Glenn O. Hawbaker came in higher at $1,105,499.25.
The airport authority decided to review each of the bids in detail before awarding the project. The delay in deciding will allow the authority to determine whether either bid meets the specifications required for the project.
The authority received notification that it received more than $1 million in grants from local, state and federal dollars recently. Those funds will be divided between work on the taxiway and for the purchase of new snow removal equipment.
“The federal share will be $988,000 while the state and local shares will amount to $26,000,” said state Rep. Camille “Bud” George, D-74 of Houtzdale, in a news release last month. (Rep. George’s Web site can be found at www.pahouse.com/george)
Dick Shaffer, airport manager, said the next project the authority would like to examine will be the implementation of a WAAS or Wide Area Augmentation System, an upgrade that would allow for pilots to better determine their position. Such an improvement, Shaffer said, could increase traffic at the airport.
Shaffer said many business flights land at other airports currently and then drive to Central Pennsylvania. With the improvement, the flights could likely land at Clearfield-Lawrence Airport.
“That’s going to be a big improvement but an expensive one,” Shaffer said of WAAS.
The decision on whether WAAS can be installed at Clearfield-Lawrence Airport will lie with the Federal Aviation Administration.