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ACRD commits cash to improving Alberni airport

$6.2 million in improvements planned for regional airport

The Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District wants to invest more than $8 million in the two airports it operates, in the Alberni Valley and on the West Coast.

The ACRD operates both the Long Beach Airport (airport designator CYAZ) and the Alberni Valley Regional Airport (CBS8).

The regional district’s plan will see improved scheduled services, support for the aerospace industry and overall increase in air traffic in the region. The strategy includes lighting improvements and advanced GPS navigational aids for both airports and an extension of the AVRA runway.

Currently the AVRA runway is 3,952 feet in length and 75 feet wide. A Runway Extension Pre-design Report commissioned by the ACRD offered three options for improvements. The option chosen by the ACRD would increase the runway to 5,000 feet by 100 feet, add lighting and improved navigational aids at a cost estimate of $6.2 million. Geotechnical analysis has determined that the current runway can support the aircraft anticipated from the expanded surface.

ACRD chair Cindy Solda sees this as an exciting project that will bring the ACRD’s airports into this century, while offering benefits in the form of business, jobs and tourism. The total costs will be $6.2 million at AVRA and $2.36 million at CYAZ.