COUNCIL ACTION FORM

On July 14, 2026, the City Council approved final plans and specifications and conditionally awarded the 2026/27 Airport Airside Improvements Project (Reconstruction of Runway 01/19) to Flynn Company, Inc., of Dubuque, Iowa, in the amount of $19,118,791. The award was contingent upon Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) concurrence and receipt of the Airport Improvement Program (AIP) grant funding necessary to finance the project.

Staff had anticipated that all potential funding for the project would not be able to be secured in a single grant. Instead, two federal construction grants would be necessary to complete the runway reconstruction. Therefore, the project specifications include points at which notice-to-proceed from the City must be provided to the contractor before further work can be completed. This approach reduces the risk to the City that work is completed which cannot be reimbursed by federal funds and must instead be funded locally.

The FAA has now offered the City the first of two anticipated federal construction grants, AIP Grant No. 3-19-0004-036 in the amount of $7,810,900. This grant amount represents 95% of the $8,222,000 in eligible project costs assigned to Grant 036. The required 5% local match for Grant 036 is $411,100. Acceptance of this grant will provide funding for the work authorized under the first Notice to Proceed (NTP No. 1).

NTP No. 1 includes work that is structured to keep the Airport's runway surfaces open for operations. Work associated with the remainder of the project will not begin until the City receives and accepts the second anticipated FAA grant and issues NTP No. 2.  The second grant is anticipated to be awarded in April 2027. During NTP No. 2, the Airport's runway surfaces will be closed for a several-month period.

It is important to note that although the grant agreement was finalized and provided to the City on on September 11, the FAA requires that the City provide the required signatures for this initial $7,810,900 grant no later than September 16. A failure to do so forfeits the grant award.

The FAA's budget establishes a total eligible construction-phase project cost of $22,410,000, consisting of $20,580,100 in federal funds and $1,829,900 in required local match. Including the previously approved design phase, the total required local match is $1,889,905. The City has identified $2,327,500 in local funding, which is sufficient to provide the required match and leaves $437,595 available in local funding above the current anticipated project expenses.

 

The revised project revenues and expenses are shown below:

 

Fiscal Year	Revised Available Revenues	Amount	Revised Anticipated Expenses	Amount
	Design Phase		Design Phase
2024/25	Federal Grant - Design (95%)	$1,140,095	PSA - Design	$1,196,600
2024/25	Airport Improvements Fund	$130,000	Design Independent Fee Evaluation (IFE)	$3,500
	Construction Phase		Construction Phase - FAA Grants 036/037
2025/26	Federal Grant 036 (95%) THIS COUNCIL ACTION	$7,810,900	Administration/Legal/Advertisement	$6,209
2026/27	Federal Grant 037 (90%) (revised)	$12,769,200	AGIS Design	$110,000
2024/25	Airport Improvements Fund (Reprogrammed)	$25,000	End Fire Glideslope Design	$75,000
2025/26	G.O. Bonds	$531,750	Construction Services	$2,378,000
2026/27	G.O. Bonds	$623,250	AGIS As-Built	$95,000
2026/27	G.O. Bonds (previously issued)	$975,000	As-Built Airport Layout Plan (ALP)	$40,000
2026/27	Airport Improvements Fund	$42,500	Grant Closeout	$27,000
			Construction Contract - Runway 01/19	$19,118,791
			IFE - AGIS and Construction Services	$10,000
			Glide Slope Refurbishment Kits	$340,000
			Flight Checks	$210,000
	Revised Total Revenue	$24,047,695	Revised Total Expense	$23,610,100
	Remaining Available Local Revenue after Anticipated Expenses			$437,595

 

 

 

 

1. Approve a resolution accepting FAA AIP Grant No. 3-19-0004-036 in the amount of $7,810,900 for the 2026/27 Airport Airside Improvements Project (Reconstruction of Runway 01/19) and authorize the Mayor to execute the Grant Agreement on behalf of the City.
   
   
2. Do not accept the grant offer and direct staff to pursue modifications to the project or an alternative funding approach.

Acceptance of this first FAA grant will provide the federal funding necessary to proceed with NTP No. 1 while keeping the Airport's runway surfaces open for operations. The remaining work, which includes a closure of the runway surfaces, will be held until the second anticipated grant is received and accepted by the City Council.  Therefore, it is the recommendation of the City Manager that the City Council adopt Alternative No. 1, as noted above.