East Texas

By BETTY WATERS
Staff Writer

GLADEWATER -- During a celebration of an expansion and upgrade of Gladewater Municipal Airport, Texas Department of Transportation Aviation Division Executive Director Dave Fulton said the community understands and supports the airport's value, not just for aviation, but for economic development.

Rural airports are on the verge of making a huge contribution because business aviation more and more is shifting from airlines -- if at all possible -- to personal air transportation, said Fulton, guest speaker for a ceremony Wednesday celebrating completion of the Gladewater airport improvements.

More and more companies will fly in the future to Gladewater and other rural airports, Fulton predicted, because technology advancements have made small jets affordable by medium and small companies and they don't have to fly to larger airports at Dallas-Fort Worth or Tyler or Longview.

"The future for rural America and rural aviation I think is very bright," Fulton said. While TxDOT receives a lot of thanks for channeling development funds to rural airports, he added, "There's no amount of money in the world that will make an airport successful if the community doesn't support it."

Surveying a crowd on hand for a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the airport's expansion, Fulton said, "I've been to many, many dedications like this and I was surprised to see how many people are here. That's very encouraging. When you see this number of people, you know the community is behind this airport."

Approximately 45-50 people attended the event, according to a Tyler Morning Telegraph count.

Throughout his 33-year career in two states, the state official has found a lot of people don't understand why small rural communities have an airport and has heard complaints they are just for rich doctors and rich lawyers who go out on the weekend and fly their expensive planes. A similar complaint was made when the state started building farm-to-market roads in 1917 to get farmers out of the mud, when people griped that the roads were for rich doctors and rich lawyers who have cars to drive on, according to a history of the highway department.

But Fulton said he thinks times are changing.

Fulton quoted Sen. Phil Graham, who said, "I am aware of significant economic development responsibilities shouldered by the rural airports of Texas. Aviation is to our Texas towns and cities today what the railroad was to the early American communities of the 1860s -- it has opened up the heartland. We are just starting to see that happen (with rural airports)."

Fulton concurred, "It's finally our turn." Participating in events celebrating expansion of rural airports is a "delightful part of my job," he said.

Although a TxDOT grant to the city of Gladewater funded 90 percent of the $2.2 million upgrade of the Gladewater airport, Fulton thanked Gladewater Economic Development Corporation for putting cash into the project. GEDCO contributed the other 10 percent from city sales tax revenues.

The project involved construction of a 700-foot new taxiway that connects the southern end of the airport's two runways, created sites for aviation-related businesses on the east side of the airport near U.S. Highway 271, developed 14 hangar sites and a large apron, repainted and resealed existing runways and taxiways and created a detention field for drainage water.

Gregg County Judge Bill Stoudt told the crowd, "It's always an honor to be here when you have economic development taking place in a community like Gladewater. When you have the expansion of your airport and you open up land for development with potential of probably close to $700,000 of new investment with new hangars and employment that comes behind it and the value of expanding our tax base -- from a county judge standpoint -- it's a very good day for Gregg County."

Stoudt added, "These type projects don't just happen. It takes a lot of people working together and that's one of the things about this region right now that is taking place. There are a lot of people working together to make good things happen for East Texas."

As Gregg County's tax base continues to show strong growth, communities like Gladewater and Kilgore and Longview are benefiting from the growth as people look for communities that have good schools and are great places to live and raise a family, Stoudt said.

Mayor Walter Derrick described the airport expansion and upgrade as "a history-making process that's happening right here in Gladewater." He added, "I think this project will be a great benefit not only to Gladewater, but the entire East Texas area."

State Rep. Bryan Hughes agreed. "This is really a regional thing; it is good for all of us in the area," said Hughes, who represents Upshur, Camp, Harris and Wood counties.

"So much money, so much time went into this (project) and to all those involved -- the folks locally, the folks at TxDOT, all the government officials involved, my first message to you is thank you for this hard work that's paid off like this," Hughes said. "To folks at the airport and the community who are going to enjoy this, I would say congratulations. This is a wonderful success we are celebrating. Keep up the good work."

RIBBON CUTTING: A crowd gathers on the airplane asphalt at Gladewater Municipal Airport for a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday for a new taxiway and other airport improvements.
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