A nearly 15-year effort to build a regional airport in south-central Iowa could come to an end this week as officials move to dissolve the project. The Oskaloosa City Council is scheduled to consider ending its participation in the South Central Regional Airport Agency on Monday, followed by a similar vote in Pella on Tuesday. According to local KCCI, the agency’s board is expected to meet Wednesday to consider discontinuing the project.
Land Dispute Stalls Project
First proposed in 2012, the regional airport was intended to replace the existing municipal airports in Pella and Oskaloosa. Plans included a 5,500-foot primary runway, a 3,800-foot crosswind runway, hangars and maintenance facilities. The agency acquired 378 of the approximately 600 acres needed for construction but was unable to secure the remaining property. A 2022 Iowa Supreme Court ruling allowed Mahaska County to withdraw from the agreement establishing the airport authority, complicating further land acquisition. The project was placed on hold in 2024.
The FAA provided approximately $5.24 million in grants for the project, including $4.78 million for land acquisition, according to city records. Under the proposed dissolution, the airport agency would sell its property to help repay the federal funds. The FAA has indicated that repayment must cover the federal share of the original acquisition cost or the property’s current fair market value, whichever is greater.
Existing Airports Await Funding
“Passing the resolutions is a necessary step so the FAA can consider releasing grant funding for our existing airport,” Oskaloosa officials said in a staff memorandum prepared for Monday’s meeting.
The FAA has declined to provide additional development funding for the existing Pella and Oskaloosa airports until the Iowa cities formally abandon the regional project and demonstrate progress toward repayment.
The South Central Regional Airport Agency has estimated that selling its acquired property could take approximately two years. The FAA has indicated that returned grant funds may be available for eligible improvements at the two existing Iowa airports.
They can not abandon this project. The FAA will sue them for the funds expended, if they do. These cities sound like they will find out the hard way. Once a airport project is started and federal funds used; no backing up is allowed unless the funds are returned to the federal government.