The addition of a new, longer runway at the Perry Municipal Airport is something that has been talked about and in the works for quite some time now.

“We’re looking at about a five-year process.  We’re just finishing the environmental assessment process for the airport and then our next step is land acquisition.  So that takes roughly about 18 months to do. And so once that process is complete, we’ll work with the (Federal Aviation Administration) to start getting the new runway graded out and getting new pavement in place.  So we’re looking at a three to five-year process by the time that’s done.”

That’s City Engineer Matt Ferrier with Bolton and Menk who says actually, Perry is moving forward on the project faster than most communities would.

“It can take 10-15 years to do a project like this.  Given the condition of the runway that we’re using now it’s a safety concern for those who use the airport, including the business community that comes in and out of Perry.  So we’ve actually been working closely with the FAA to expedite the process.  We’re going to complete it in roughly about a seven year window and that’s pretty quick for a project of this size.”

Once the new runway is built, the Perry airport will be able to handle larger planes and therefor make it more attractive to area business owners.