Jim Brundige, manager of East Hampton Airport, told the East Hampton Town Board on Tuesday that five capital projects there, with a combined cost estimate of more than $600,000, are either underway or circling in for a landing.
A rehabilitation of the airport’s parking lot, to bring it into compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act, will provide more parking and a better flow of traffic, and will address the fact that “the asphalt has completely failed over the years,” according to Mr. Brundige. That project, with a price tag of around $170,000 split between engineering costs and the execution of the upgrades, should be completed by the end of next week.
Meanwhile, Mr. Brundige reported that the town spent $74,000 on an engineering assessment associated with runway-approach lighting. He said a cable leading to the lights at one of the airport runways shorted out and must be replaced via a half-mile conduit between the end of the runway and the location of the approach lights. Mr. Brundige promised cheaper maintenance costs moving forward, along with new lighting that would come with a warranty. The engineering plan is complete and the job needs to go out to bid, he said. He estimated construction costs at $250,000, with most of that going toward the half-mile cable.
While the town debates a future for the airport that may or may not include noisy jets, seaplanes, and helicopters landing and taking off, it can thank another flying menace, the Southern pine beetle, for saving the town engineering costs on a different capital project: removal of dead trees that were allowed to grow for 40 years in a “clear zone” area outside the airport. It is no longer clear and instead was described as a “hazard” by Mr. Brundige. Because of the invasive beetles, he said, the trees are already dead, which renders a mitigation plan unnecessary. The plan is to chop them all down at a cost estimate hovering around $106,000.
Another upcoming project will see faded airfield pavement markings repainted, but its timing is unclear. That plan was put on hold after Mr. Brundige said it would cost $58,000 for an engineering redesign and another $80,000 to strip the old paint and put down new paint. He told the board he asked engineers if they could simply paint over the faded markings, and said he was told that they could — with the caveat that the paint job would last for only five to six years if they went with that option. Mr. Brundige said this project is on hold as he conducts further research on how to repaint the markings, which are mandated by the Federal Aviation Administration, and try to save some money.
Lastly, he said, a new rotating beacon is on its way to replace the existing one, which has been in use for 30 years. The light has repeatedly failed and engineers have struggled in recent years to find replacement parts. A new LED beacon costing $14,365 could be installed this week, Mr. Brundige said, depending on the weather. There’s one other added benefit: There will be less light pollution and less light “wash” associated with the new LED beacon.
