11/17/2009

A bill approved by the U.S. Senate includes $2.2 million for improvements for the Salina Army National Guard Aviation Support Facility at the Salina Municipal Airport.
The 2010 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act now goes to a conference committee to resolve differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill.
The money appropriated in the bill is targeted for refurbishing the aircraft parking ramp, taxiway and access road with new concrete in front of the aviation support facility. The facility currently houses Company B, 1-108th Aviation of the Kansas Army National Guard.
The company is authorized for 8 Blackhawk helicopters and currently is assigned four, said Col. Clifford Silsby, director of facilities and engineering for the Kansas Adjutant General’s Office in Topeka.
Silsby said the original proposal was to resurface 31,000 square yards of pavement. If a bill is ultimately signed into law, the work would probably begin in August and take about 180 days to finish, Silsby said.
The proposed bill also includes $7.1 million to upgrade the Estes Road gate onto Fort Riley to meet the new Army standard for Access Control Points. Once upgraded, the road will be one of the primary access points to Custer Hill, the major troop concentration area on Fort Riley.