Moscow to request joint ownership of airport

The City of Moscow will pursue ownership of one-half of the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport’s real property and fixtures following a Monday night city council vote.

Pullman and Moscow have jointly operated the airport since 1939 and have representatives on the airport board, but Moscow is not a co-owner of the airport.

Both cities contribute funds from their annual budgets for the operations and capital improvements for the airport. Moscow taxpayers contributed $2.5 million to the runway realignment project at the airport.

Moscow is allowed to request Pullman transfer one-half ownership to the city. Moscow consulted with Spokane attorneys who said there are no disadvantages to doing this.

According to a memo from attorneys Brian Werst and Jim McDevitt, Pullman and Moscow do not receive revenue received by the airport, but Pullman can receive economic benefits from development and activities off the airport’s property. Moscow could explore an agreement to share this revenue with Pullman.

In a workshop last week, the Moscow City Council expressed support for contributing as much as $2 million to help fund a new airport terminal. The Pullman City Council will hear a presentation on the new airport terminal tonight and make a decision about its financial contribution at a later date.

Also on Monday, the council voted in favor of applying for a grant to help fund a new fire engine for the Moscow Volunteer Fire Department.

Moscow is requesting $335,000 from the Idaho Community Development Block Grant to cover half the cost of the new engine. The grant is distributed by the Idaho Department of Commerce.

If approved, the grant will be awarded to Moscow next spring, and the engine would arrive in 2023. It takes 12-16 months for a new engine to be built.

The new engine would replace an existing Moscow firetruck that was due for retirement in 2018. The new engine is anticipated to serve the department for 20 years.

Kuipers can be reached at akuipers@dnews.com.