Colorado Aeronautical Board Approves $11.3 Million in Airport Funding

Photo above – A 2023 aerial view of Greely-Weld County Airport (GXY). The Colorado Aeronautical Board (CAB) approved a $2 million Colorado Discretionary Aviation Grant (CDAG) to rehabilitate the airport’s general aviation apron. Photo by Shahn Sederberg, CDOT.

The Colorado Aeronautical Board (CAB) approved the FY2024 state and locally funded discretionary aviation grants for Colorado airports during a January 23, 2024, CAB meeting. The unanimous decision authorized the distribution of $11.3 million in state aviation fuel tax revenues through grants to 21 Colorado public-use airports under the Colorado Discretionary Aviation Grant (CDAG) Program administered by the Colorado Department of Transportation’s (CDOT) Division of Aeronautics.

The grants ranged from $67,500 and as much as $2 million. This year’s grant awards were categorized into six different project types including airfield construction and rehabilitation, pavement maintenance, snow removal equipment and storage facilities, weather reporting, and other airport projects. 40% of this year’s discretionary aviation grant awards were allocated to support seven airfield construction and rehabilitation projects, including a $2 million grant awarded to Greeley-Weld County Airport to fund 90% of the cost of rehabilitating the airport’s general aviation apron.

A comprehensive listing of each airport grant award can be found here.

“On behalf of the Greeley-Weld County Airport Authority staff and board, we are grateful for the CDOT Division of Aeronautics’ decision to fund our main ramp rehabilitation project. This grant and previous grants we have received from the division have been integral to the airport’s safety and success over the years. We look forward to the continued work that the division puts into building and maintaining Colorado’s aviation network and would like to thank the staff for their commitment to their work,” said Greeley-Weld County Airport Director Cooper Anderson.

Planners with the Colorado Division of Aeronautics are now in preparation for a second cycle of grant awards. The Federal Matching Fund Grant Hearings will take place at the upcoming Colorado Aeronautical Board (CAB) meeting scheduled for Wednesday, April 18, 2024.