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| Collin County airport opens new runway, eyes commercial future |
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| Source: - Star Local News |
| by Chris Beattie |
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A flight toward commercial aviation out of McKinney reached a new height Thursday at
the Collin County Regional Airport with the first takeoff from its new runway.
Though the 7,000-foot runway will not be officially complete until around November, a
three-aircraft takeoff and landing signified its opening to the public -- which, to airport
director Ken Wiegand, means at least one thing.
"It's going to attract larger aircraft," Wiegand said.
Air traffic matching that at D/FW International Airport or Love Field could be far off, but
Collin County cities expect the number of corporate clients to quickly increase --
particularly McKinney, which through its economic development corporation helped
fund the $52 million project.
"We've had a couple of events this week that really point to where McKinney's going
and how we're moving forward in the future as far as economic development's
concerned," Mayor Brian Loughmiller said Thursday, referring to Emerson Process
Management's Tuesday groundbreaking on its global headquarters at the Gateway
site. "This airport is a key component of that."
The runway replaces CCRA's original runway, built in 1979, that will now serve as a
taxiway. At 50 feet wider and with a weight-bearing capacity of 450,000 pounds, the
runway is accessible to "potential commercial aircraft operations at some point in the
future," said Andrew Cowan, vice chairman of the Collin County Airport Development
Corporation (CCADC).
Planning for the runway, and last year's addition of a 78-foot control tower, began
nearly a decade ago, in step with a desire to turn McKinney Municipal Airport into
Collin County's only regional airport.
The runway -- the largest single project in Texas Department of Transportation
(TxDOT) aviation history -- required the acquisition of about 164 acres of land, the
movement of 1.25 million cubic yards of soil, 53,000 tons of concrete covering about
30 acres, and 25 miles of electrical wire from 202 runway and taxiway lights and
signs in the airport's instrument landing system, Cowan said.
"We realize we could have built it to regular federal standards (100 feet wide, 150,000
weight capacity)," Wiegand said, "but why do that when we can go bigger?"
The city and the CCADC developed a regional financial incentive initiative to attract
business prospects throughout the area to base aircraft at the airport. It offers a 25
percent abatement of BPP and real estate taxes for Collin County cities willing to
bring their corporate clients to CCRA, as long as they meet specific value and
investment criteria.
"Business aircraft make business executives more efficient; it's as simple as that,"
Collin County Judge Keith Self told Thursday's attendees, city council members and
city managers from Princeton, New Hope and Farmersville, as well as state and
federal representatives. "Companies are going to want to experience the
convenience of coming to Collin County Regional Airport, hangaring their aircraft here
and being able to fly wherever they do business."
The airport serves companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Target, Wal-Mart and Texas
Instruments, and aims to soon add Emerson Process Management and Traxxas
(building its headquarters across town at Craig Ranch) to that list.
With continued help from Congressman Sam Johnson in obtaining monetary support
from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which Loughmiller said is "committed
to this airport," CCRA should continue its flight toward commercial aviation.
With the new runway and surrounding land, the airport seems to have plenty of room
to fly that direction.
"We are at the center of the growth of the entire Metroplex, so as we talk about moving
from 6.5 million people to 9 million people and above, a lot of that growth is going to
happen right here," Self said of the county. "This airport, I believe, will offer passenger
service...I believe that is the long-term goal and should be the long-term goal."
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