– The Northern Development Initiative Trust is an independent, non-profit corporation; a catalyst stimulating economic growth through investments in grassroots, community-led projects.
PRINCE GEORGE – The Prince George Airport will soon undertake renovations and operational upgrades valued at $683,886 to increase efficiencies and enable future growth for daily flights and new airlines thanks in part to the support of funding from Northern Development Initiative Trust.
In 2016, Northern Development’s board of directors approved $368,418 in funding for the projects through its Economic Diversification Infrastructure program. The program specifically targets projects that significantly strengthen the local economy, that drive revenue and job creation through a major capital investment and provide a long-term asset for the community.
$250,000 of these funds were awarded to support terminal renovations valued at $514,717.
The Prince George Airport is currently over capacity for office space, where it is difficult for existing partner airlines to find the space they need for operational or production efficiencies.
Renovating the terminal to maximize the use of existing space and adding some additional capacity will enable the Prince George Airport Authority to entertain opportunities with new potential flight partners.
The hold room for passengers waiting to board flights is at capacity during peak flight hours as the space accommodates four carriers with two gates, creating congestion leading to flight delays. Additionally, one of the gates creates a vacuum from the wind when it is open, causing safety concerns as the doors can swing back abruptly.
The project will see a renovated gate vestibule with an increased size with improved accessibility, better position and addition of sliding doors which will eliminate the need to construct a third gate.
The Prince George Airport also struggles with finding space to display flight information. Thanks to this project, digital signage will replace the existing manual signs in the hold room, allowing up to date information to be displayed for passengers.
An additional $118,418 for a $169,168 project was approved to improve the process of fuel sale management. Currently, airport staff account for fuel inventory and sale manually, resulting in significant staff time and risk of error.
Automating this process will help ensure that a reasonably priced fuel supply is available to service cargo and passenger aircrafts and frees up staff time to help with fuel business development which is forecasted by the Prince George Airport Authority to increase in 2017.
