Port authority awards contract for improvements

YOUNGSTOWN — The Western Reserve Port Authority has awarded a contract of $4,587,000 to Kirila Contractors of Brookfield to make improvements to the Midfield Taxiway at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport.

The project may have to be scaled back if a portion of the funding through the Federal Aviation Administration is not approved. Construction likely is to begin within the next two to three months.

Among the planned improvements are removal of pavement that “comes in at various angles that is confusing” and removal of a grade on a taxiway that reduces visibility across the airfield, said Dan Dickten, director of aviation at the airport.

The project also will include creation of a section of taxiway that provides a “turn” where planes can approach one of the runways. The turn will be eliminated if the additional funding is not approved.

All the changes are intended to reduce “incursions,” which are the FAA’s term for situations that could cause aircraft to come too close to one another. The project also will improve drainage.

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