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Chamber Hears History
Of Airport Development
The Greater Soldotna Chamber
of Commerce, at its annual din
ner Saturday night, listed the de
velopment of the Soldotna Trunk
Airport as its greatest achieve
ment during the past year.
Soldotna's airport, with present
total value reported as $1,000,000,
underwent an extensive improve
ment program in 1902. This in
cluded lengthening and widening
I of runways and installation of 7X
lights lining runway and term
inal taxiway as part of the $154,
000 fie] dimprovement construc
tion, most of which was com
pleted this fall. Balance of con
struction will he completed in the
spring, when paving is planned.
Lights were turned on Sunday,
Dec. :>0, at 7:30 p.m. after several
shifts by the City Council and
much donated help following a
weekend of work in below zero
weather. The lights currently are
an above ground installation and
will be set into permanent place
below ground after the ground
thaws.
A resume of the long struggle
to obtain an adequate airport for
Soldotna was presented at the
Chamber’s annual meeting. Now
on file with the Chamber of Com
merce and the city clerk are many
letters and forms comprising the
complete land acquisition file for
the airport and park use.
The original application for an
airport was made by the Cham
ber on .Jan. 23, 1959. It was sign
ed by William S. Olsen, Chamber
president at that time, and was
addressed to the Bureau of Land
Management,
A petition, endorsed by the
Soldotna Chamber of Commerce
and the Soldotna Community Club
and bearing 140 signatures, was
addressed to Gov. William Egan
on Feb. 19, 1959. The petition
pointed out that the Soldotna
area is the oil center and cross
roads of the Kenai Peninsula,
comprised at that time of ap
proximately 90 square miles and
with a population of about 800
(with population mushrooming
from 19 in 1950 to 200 in 1955 and
to 800 in 1959).
The town at that time had 25
permanent business establish
ments plus several companies
making Soldotna their headquar
ters: Coastal Drilling, Weaver
Brothers, Standard Oil, Richfield
Oil, Union Oil. Halbouty Oil, Phil
lips Petroleum, three geophysical
companies plus the southern divi
sion headquarters for White Alice
sites, Bureau of Public Roads
maintenance and construction di
vision, with a bank due to open
soon and with more than 150
homesteaders in the area. Oil ex
ploration people were deploring
the lack of an adequate airfield
for their operations, the petition
stated.
The small and inadequate air
field then in use was built, paid
for and maintained entirely by
local persons on borrowed ground
and a new airport was deemed es
sential to the fast growing com
munity. Three airport sites were
listed as available within one and
one-half miles of Soldotna. The
State Legislature was asked to
cooperate in helping Soldotna ob
tain a better facility.
In 1960, the Chamber’s annual
report continued, the airport com
mittee of the Chamber of Com
merce relinquished anti transfer
red to the city the airport and
park lands which were obtained
through the Bureau of Land
Management. The Chamber nom
inated the first airport commis
sion and the City Council confirm
ed the appointment and vested in
them the powers to devise means
to develop the airport. Those
named were Clarence E. Good
rich, M. L. “Red” Grange and
William S. Olsen.
In 1962, the request to transfer
under the Federal Airport Act
was completed with the Bureau of
Land Management.
A request for federal aid was
filed in April 1962 and the request
was granted exactly as filed. The
total was $140,000 with the city
matching 37 tfc 'A and the Federal
62 V2' <. The total was later in
creased to $154,000 on the same
basis.
I he grant agreement was sign
ed Sept. 28, 1962 at 9 p.m. by the
City Council and at 6 a.m. the fol
lownig morning, Sept. 29, 1962,
work was started at the trunk
airport development. Work was
nearly completed after 60 days
of long' hours and fast planning—
and when 4,200 feet of airport
lights were turned on concluded
the 1962 airport development.
.. .After the Soldotna City Coun
cil signed the Federal Aviation
Agency grant agreement, the air
port commission ceased to func
tion and the City Council assum
ed full authority to proceed
with the airport development pro
gram. Clarence Goodrich was ap
pointed as co-ordinator for the
Chamber of Commerce, the City
Council and the F.A.A. during
the balance of the 1962 develop
ment.
The request for federal aid
($154,794.20), the allocation and
grant agreement all involved the
city as sponsor for $58,048.10,
matching 'n'-j'i funds, and fed
eral grant of $96,746.10. The pro
gram was handled by a force ac
count agreement whereby the
city rented equipment to the pro
ject and by donations by the su
pervising personnel, equipment
operators and highway engineers
and others donating to the pro
gram—all without cash outlay by
the City of Soldotna or by the
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55
State, only the community donat
ing 100'r.
Personnel responsible for this
phase of the program were
Charles Parker, project engineer;
M. I„. “Red” Grange. construction
superintendent; Dave Fowler,
construction foreman; Clarence
Goodrich, project coordinator, and
Dolly (Mrs. Jack) Farnsworth,
project accountant.
The efforts of the Chamber of
Commerce Airport Committee and
tjie Airport Commission, appoint
ed by the Chamber and the City
Council, have created a useable
airport facility, evaluated by the
F.A.A. standards at over one-half
million dollars. The 425 acres of
land that the City obtained patent
to for airport use without cost is
valued at one-half million dollars
making the present total value
of the airport property at $1,000,
000, the report read.
All of these accomplishments
were brought about without cash,
from the City, the report pointed
out. The cash outlay by the State
was only $20,000 of bush airfields
and emergency funds, and the
Federal aid grant of -$96,746.10.
The community was more than
willing to donate and help. The
( hamber and the City Council
were only the guiding agencies.
The City Council has author
ized Goodrich as coordinator to
proceed with the 1963 Federal aid
project to finish the earth work
and to pave the airport.
The airport development pro
gram was made possible by the
assistance and consideration of
personnel in the airport division
of the F.A.A. in Anchorage. In
appreciation for this cooperation,
the Greater Soldotna Chamber of
Commerce has drafted a letter to
the F.A.A. in which the City
Council concurs, expressing gra
titude for making it possible for
Soldotna to develop the much
needed airport facility for the
area, the report concluded.
Classifieds are news.
High Times
By Mich at* lent* Pendleton
Dan Ballard, the high school
hand director, is recording audi
tions to send to Anchorage for
the Honor Band in the spring.
Several students are trying out
for the audition recordings.
Mrs. Lenore Jones, Kenai High
secretary, would like to buy or
borrow a recording of either
“5’2" or “Sweet Georgia Brown.”
Expenses of the Christmas
dance were discussed at a Stu
dent Council meeting held last
Wednesday. It is reported that
everyone had a good time hut the
f
door-take did not quite equal ex
penses.
A welcoming committee is be
ing planned by Don Mann and
Adriane Brown for the many vis
itors to Kenai, it was reported.
Three petitions were presenter!
the Council for approval. An FHA
( Future Homemakers of America)
petition was presented by Mrs.
Velma Donald, home economics
instructor. The* Pep Club present
er! its petition for recognition. The
IVp Club’s sponsor is Miss Alice
Roberts. The cheerleader's pre
sented a petition for a Victory
Dance on Jan. 1*. after the bas
ketball game with West Anchor
age High School.
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