Three federal grants have been approved for Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport, totaling nearly $24 million.
Jackson City Council members approved all three grants during their meeting Tuesday by three unanimous votes. In addition, the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority received a multimodal grant from the Mississippi Department of Transportation, totaling $247,500. The grant will be allocated to one of the airport’s taxiways.
All in all, the airport has received nearly $32 million in grant funding by 2024 alone. Earlier this year, JMAA received an additional $8 million in grant funding as part of the U.S. Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Airport Terminal Program, which will be used to repair some of the airport’s infrastructure.
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Last week, the Hattiesburg Airport also received a $1,574,496 grant from MDOT, which will be used to improve an existing taxiway and construct a new one.
What are the three federal grants used for?
Two of the grants — one for $6,203,694 and another for $17,167,606 — will be used for “repairs and modifications” to one of the airport’s taxiways, according to council documents. The third grant is worth $179,730 and will be used for “repairs and modifications” to the runway safety area.
“This funding will help complete the taxiway renovation,” said Rosa Beckett, the airport’s CEO.
Beckett told the council that the airport has already spent more than $22 million and that “this funding will help us complete the taxiway renovation.”
The third grant is for $179,730 and will be used for “repairs and modifications” to the runway safety area.
According to L. Sherie Dean, JMAA’s director of communications, marketing and public relations, the airport currently has 26 taxiways.
Dean said no delays are expected on these projects.
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Council documents show that the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority submitted an application for the grants on July 8. Ten days later, on July 18, the Federal Aviation Administration offered all three to JMAA. The council’s vote Tuesday authorizes Beckett to accept the FAA grants on JMAA’s behalf.
All three grants are part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, signed by President Joe Biden in November 2021, which provides $15 billion in funding for airport infrastructure.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: City Council Approves $24 Million in Grants for Jackson MS Airport
