Plane returns to harbor after a.m. trip AIR NEW ULM’S piper Navajo plane lands this morning on the paved runway here, returning from the daily morning flight to the Twin Cities. City officials flew up to St. Paul Tuesday via Air New Ulm for the meeting on the New Ulm airport. Air New Ulm president Roger Krause also was at the meeting. (Photo by Ron Grieser)

Expansion of the New Ulm airport at its present site is the recommendation of the consulting firm which has been studying the future of the airport here.

Pete Melia, consulting engineer, told city and state officials at a meeting in St. Paul Tuesday that his study of the airport shows no physical problems with expansion at the present site.

A PROBLEM that will have to be met at the present site is conformance with state airport zoning regulations, since the present site is near developed areas.

Melia said it would cost about the same to build a new airport as to stay at the present site and develop that.

Rep. Tony Eckstein of New Ulm, present at the meeting, said relocation to a new site would involve purchase of 1 1/2 to two square miles of level land somewhere between New Ulm and Sleepy Eye. He said he didn’t think there was such a 1,200-to-1,300-acre tract available that contained no roads or no slough.

A DECISION on whether to expand at the present site or relocate is up the the New Ulm City Council. Nothing more can be done until this decision is made. A public meeting is set for tonight to gauge public reaction and let people know the status of the airport plans. No official action is expected tonight.

The proposal to expand at the present site would involve buying a minimum of 265 acres, possibly more depending on how many parcels have to be squared off.

The enlarged site would provide room for a paved runway of about 4,200 feet and a grass landing strip longer than the present 2,500 feet. It would allow room for possible expansion to a 5,500-foot paved runway 15 or 20 years from now, if warranted by the growth of the town and air traffic.

IF THIS 5,500 foot runway ever were built, a stretch of County Road 27 would have to be relocated to the south. Eckstein noted this is possible as far as terrain.

Money to help reimburse for any relocation of the county road and for purchase of land for expansion is available, 75 per cent from the federal government, 15 per cent from the state. These state and federal reimbursing funds come from user fees (flight fuel tax) rather than from general revenue money, Eckstein noted.

The airport presently has a 2,900-foot paved runway and a 2,500-foot grass landing strip.

ROGER KRAUSE, president of New Ulm Flight Services, which operates the airport, said if the airport had a 4,300-foot runway, a town the size of New Ulm would probably never need to go to the 5,500-foot length.

Lawrence McCabe, state aeronautics commissioner, said he would go along with the plan to expand at the present site if it was agreed that County Road 27 would be moved if and when necessary.

City Manager Richard Salvati asked if it would be possible to have Highway 14 go through a tunnel as it goes by the airport, thereby allowing the runway to extend closer to that road.

The consultant, Melia, said the cost of doing this would be prohibitive.

MCCABE SAID backing the runway up to the edge of a road wouldn’t be desirable from a safety standpoint.

The state has certain standards regarding distance from runway to road which must be met for safety reasons,since planes occasionally overshoot a runway on takeoff or landing.

“I get out to these airports around the state,” McCabe said, “and I see tracks sometimes off the end of the runway where people land short or abort a takeoff. These may not be reported but they do happen. It’s nice to have that extra margin of open space when that happens,” McCabe said.

SALVATI SAID land around New Ulm is some of the best agricultural land in the state and this presents a problem in land acquisition.

McCabe said other communities such as Worthington and Fairmont have faced and met this problem. He said other cities which has postponed action have found land not provided earlier cost many times more when it had to be bought at a later date.

The consensus Tuesday was not to plan for eventual precision instrument landing capability at New Ulm airport, since this would definitely require relocation to another site and would also add to the cost (more clear zones are needed).

McCabe said it was the city’s decision but if 20 years from now New Ulm needs a bigger airport “you’ll have to bite the bullet.”

MANKATO AIRPORT is scheduled to have precision instrument landing within about three years. William Gafford, City Council president, said there was no need for two such airports within 30 miles.

Only cost estimate mentioned for expansion and development at the present site was $3 million.

Also present Tuesday in St. Paul were Vern Clobes of Milford Township, an interested citizen who is a pilot for a Minneapolis airlines; Harley Schneider, city engineer; several men from the state aeronautics department and a man from the Federal Aviation Administration.

New Ulm Daily Journal

Nov. 13, 1974