Westchester County Airport could soon be getting some more upgrades.
On May 28, the county”™s Budget and Appropriations committee approved $2 million in bonds to install new ticket counters and escalators at the airport. Legislators will vote June 3 on the measure.
The committee approved $3.26 million in funding from the Federal Aviation Administration to rebuild Taxiway A. The funding from the FAA will cover 90 percent of the project, with the airport contributing $362,000. The county expects the state Department of Transportation to cover half of the county”™s contributions.
Two weeks ago, county legislators approved $8 million in bonds to improve the main terminal and a hangar used by JPMorgan Chase and Co. for its corporate jets.
The bonds will help replace boilers, air-conditioning units, baggage carousels and generators. Airport revenue will also be used to pay for the upgrades.
The JPMorgan hangar, Hangar E, will have improvements made to its water systems. The county also plans to extend a pipeline in Rye Brook to the airport, at a cost of $250,000. The project is scheduled to be done this summer. Currently tenants mostly use oil-fired boilers.
In 2012, the airport had 1.75 million passengers, down from 1.9 million in 2011 and its lowest count since 2007. The airport had 3,100 fewer flights last year, a 2 percent decrease from 2011. Airport officials expect a $2 million revenue decrease this year compared with 2012, as they deal with the loss of AirTran Airways.
