U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today announced two federal awards totaling $1,148,309 are being awarded to the Saratoga County Airport for infrastructure upgrades and wildlife hazard assessments. The funding is allocated through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Airport Improvement Program.
“These Federal Aviation Administration grants will allow for important infrastructure upgrades at the Saratoga County Airport, which will make the lighting on the taxiway and the entire airport safer, more modern and more efficient,” said Senator Schumer. “This infrastructure project will ensure that Saratoga County Airport can continue to serve businesses, residents and visitors and help boost the area’s economy.”
“This is an important investment for the Saratoga County Airport,” Senator Gillibrand said. “Updating the airport’s runway infrastructure and ensuring the environmental safety of the area can help provide better, safer service for travelers and business, and help strengthen the local economy.”
“Saratoga County has been working to improve the safety and operation of our county airport,” said Alan Grattidge, Chairman of the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors. “With the ongoing economic activities at our tech campus and with all of Saratoga’s summer entertainment attractions, our airport is being used for a variety of purposes. We appreciate both Senator Gillibrand and Senator Schumer’s help in obtaining these grants. We look forward to implementing both the runway guidance system and the wildlife hazard assessment as we move forward with improvements to our county airport.”
The federal funding for the Saratoga County Airport will be awarded in two separate grants. First, $1,058,309 will be used to improve the current taxiway lighting system and install a Precision Approach Path Indicator for Runways 5, 23 and 32 which the airport more accessible to pilots by providing improved approaches to the runway ends. Second, $90,000 of the allocated funds will be specifically used to conduct a Wildlife Hazard Assessment to identify local wildlife species and assess their numbers, locations, local movement, and daily/seasonal activities in order to ensure that the airport can operate safely and at its highest efficiency.