Added funds will help Yuma airport

  Yuma International Airport's vision of supporting defense contractors with runways, parking and building facilities just got $258,394 stronger this week.

  The funds from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will be used to refurbish a runway and design an aircraft parking area, according to Craig Williams, airport director.

  Williams said the funding takes Yuma International Airport one step closer in building its Defense Contractor Complex (DCC), an area used mostly by contractors related to Marine Corps Air Station Yuma and the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground.

  "We take care of the guys who take care of the military," Williams said. "This (funding) is obviously very important for the citizens of Yuma because this is going to have a major impact on the future economic development of the airport which in turn benefits every citizen in Yuma directly."

  Facilities within the DCC are used when defense contractors need temporary or long-term space for testing or research, Williams said. He gave the examples of a contractor needing space for work it plans to do locally for NASA.

  "We have the advantage of being in the middle of two of the largest military complexes in the United States," the airport director said. "When you have that much military presence you just have to have a large degree of support."

  The airport began developing its DCC two years ago. The 160-acre complex is located in the southwest portion of the airfield and currently consists of several buildings and a taxiway. But Williams says the area will boom in size and importance in coming years."We will see some real vision fully realized in about five years," the airport director said. "But by this time next year we're going to see this area trucking along with new people out here, with people saying 'I need more space' and with new people knocking on the door."

  Williams said the airport plans to build a new hangar within the DCC, with work starting this fall. He said the U.S. Border Patrol plans to expand its building within the DCC and the shipper FedEx plans to start building within 12-18 months. He added that numerous local developers have also shown interest in building within the DCC.

  To date about $10 million has been invested in the airport's DCC. Most of those funds have come from the FAA, with a minority of funding awarded by the Arizona Department of Transportation.

 Williams said he couldn't give an exact overall price tag for the project because an exact scope for its size has never been determined.

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Darin Fenger can be reached at
dfenger@yumasun.com or 539-6860.