Colorado City Airport Honored as 2023 Airport of the Year

Community engagement and facility upgrades helped make Colorado City Municipal Airport the state’s Airport of the Year for 2023. The airport is owned and operated by the Town of Colorado City.

The Arizona Department of Transportation’s Aeronautics Group cited the northern Arizona airport’s community outreach, including an expanded Fly-in and Airshow attended by 1,400 people, Facebook and Instagram promotion of events, a new logo submitted by a member of the public and school tours attended by more than 300 area students.

In addition, the airport spruced up its grounds, added environmentally friendly landscaping around the terminal, installed new perimeter fencing, developed plans for 13 new hangars and upgraded vending machines in its terminal to accept credit cards and Apple Pay. Many of the airport’s upgrades were volunteer efforts.

This is the second time Colorado City Municipal Airport has been named the state’s Airport of the Year. The first was in 1992. It is one of 67 airports across Arizona that are publicly owned and publicly operated.

ADOT’s Aeronautics Group works to disperse grant funding to eligible capital improvement projects at state airports.

Kim Stevens

Kim Stevens is the publisher of State Aviation Journal, which he founded in 2009. A longtime commercial-rated pilot, he was introduced to state aviation in 1992 as Director of the Nebraska Department of Aeronautics, later serving as Deputy Division Director for the Arizona Department of Transportation's Aeronautics Division. From 2013 to 2018, he was Director of Communications and Operations for the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO) in Washington, D.C. Relocating to North Carolina, Kim worked for the Raleigh-Durham International Airport for two years and now concentrates solely on the Journal. Prior to his aviation career, Kim spent a decade in the newspaper and magazine business.