PEORIA, Ill. — The US Department of Transportation on Tuesday announced a Phase 2 Grant for the General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport.
The $14 million grant, provided through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, will continue construction of a replacement Air Traffic Control Tower at PIA.
The existing tower is co-located with the old terminal which opened in 1959.
The tower has deteriorated over the years, and does not meet current FAA standards or requirements of the Americans With Disabilities Act.
The new tower will meet all of the FAA’s standards and provide a safe, facility at PIA.
A previous grant of $15 million was announced last summer. This grant brings the total to roughly $30 million for the project.
“The cost estimates from our 2017 design process were approximately $20 million, and we were concerned about the effects of inflation on the project.”, said Gene Olson, Peoria’s Director of Airports. “So, this new Phase 2 grant helps us fund the project.”
Peoria’s Airport Authority has been working on completing preliminary requirements for the Air Traffic Control Tower since the initial grant was announced last July. One major element of this work was to verify the Environmental Assessment that was completed in 2017.
In the five years since the design work was completed, building codes and FAA design standards have also changed. The work to verify the design is on-going, Olson said.
