The first phase of the $18 million runway extension project at St. Croix's Henry E. Rohlsen Airport will be completed in two to three weeks, according to V.I. Port Authority officials.
The initial phase of the four-phase project included groundwork for the new section of runway, which will extend the strip from 7,600 feet to 10,000 feet, said Jeff Lawlor, a senior engineer for Port Authority.
The next phase will include asphalt and lighting work on the runway and will be completed at the end of 2001.
"It's going very well at this point in time," Lawlor said.
In March 2000, the Port Authority board of directors voted to stop the project when residents of the adjacent Yellow Cedar neighborhood complained that dust stirred up by construction equipment was causing health problems. Work resumed in June, but residents and the Port Authority have been at odds.
Because of the proximity of the runway to many homes in Yellow Cedar, 31 properties had to be purchased by the Port Authority, 25 of which have dwellings that house 65 families. Because 90 percent of the resident buyout—and a large portion of the expansion construction—will be paid for using federal discretionary funds, Port Authority officials were afraid that the delay would affect funding for the project.
Lawlor, meanwhile, said the latter phases of the project include a new air traffic tower, which the Port Authority expects will be in place by the end of the year and in service by the end of 2002 or early 2003.
