Airpor t appraisals include 469 acres

No wonder some county officials look confused.

County officials said they are meticulously combing through the more than 15 Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) guidelines required for land acquisitions. The county must adhere to the guidelines or risk losing federal funding for their airport project.

In September, Cherokee County Council approved a motion to appraise the 469 acres the county hopes to acquire for the proposed airport project.

The 469 acres, located off Hwy. 29 near the Broad River, consists of nearly 50 tracts, with Milliken owning about 400 acres, according to county officials.

About 20 tracts are either residential or rental properties, county officials said.

Once the county feels comfortable it has met the guidelines, the landowners will be notified of the appraisal process.

County officials said the appraisal process typically takes six months to complete.

Council has appropriated $3,000 for the appraisals.

The proposed airport would be done in two stages. The first construction phase would cost $28.9 million for a 4,000-foot runway, a full parallel taxiway, an approach lighting system and a small terminal area.

The second phase would cost $8.6 million to extend the runway and taxiway to 5,500 feet.

The economic impact study by W.K. Dickson found the proposed airport would need to initially attract a manufacturer with at least 150 jobs in order for the project to be financially viable.