While chicken coops are pretty common in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, it IS unusual to find one being used as an airport terminal. The original function may not be readily apparent to first-time visitors, but it’s easy to see that the converted poultry house has seen better days.
The Luray Caverns Airport has grown from 40 acres to over 100, and the structure has been the hub of flight operations since the facility was constructed in 1969. Though a replacement had been in the capital improvement plan for some time, the project remained grounded until 2019 when USDA Rural Development helped clear it for takeoff.
Edwin Markowitz of the Luray-Page County Airport Authority arrived armed with a 2007 study when he first met with Community Programs Specialist Cyndy Leonard to make a case for a larger building. The airport has documented 10,000 operations (takeoffs and landings) per year with the current tracking system and Markowitz suspects that number could actually be as high as 12,000.
“All our ducks had to be in a row for the plan to work and the low interest rates made it an opportune time for us to move forward,” said Markowitz.
Leonard helped him secure a $4.2 million community facilities loan for upgrades that also included an 18-unit t-hangar, fuel farm relocation and debt refinancing for the facility. A $2.8 million contribution from the Virginia Department of Aviation brought total funding to $7.1 million.
Four years later, signs of change are easily visible at the general aviation airport. The t-hangars have been completed, bringing the total capacity to about 44 aircraft. A local construction team also broke ground on the terminal building that should be open for business in the summer of 2024.
The new structure will feature amenities like a pilots’ lounge, a community conference room, and Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant restrooms. Much of the early site preparation was focused on a new parking lot for the structure, which is located outside the security gates to make it easier for visitors to drop off or pick up travelers.
“This building will outlive me and should be here 100 years or more,” said Markowitz. “It has a metal roof and masonry walls, so termites will never eat it.”
Markowitz is currently working on a state grant to cover furnishings and finalizing some details for the fuel farm project. The fuel oil separator and drainage system are in place, and he has cleared the location with the Environmental Protection Agency and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. The existing tanks could be good for another 20 years, so Markowitz hopes to use existing resources to relocate them.
“The key to successful operations is to keep the hangars rented,” said Markowitz. “We’ve got 18 leases in place and advance payments for the first year helped our cash flow. With the phone calls I get every week, I know I could rent 18 more.”
The next phase of improvements includes removal of that old terminal building and a nearby Quonset hut, lengthening the runway, and improving the roads around the facility to further improve the economic development “peck-ture” in Page County.
