LIVINGSTON — The Livingston Parish Council approved giving the Livingston Parish Airport District an additional $15,000 last week to go toward a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) study that could eventually help the proposed airport start receiving federal funds.
The council voted 5-2 to approve a $15,000 payment to the Livingston Parish Airport District. This will be included in the 2025 budget to fund a portion of a study that is already in progress.
Councilman Ryan Chavers questioned why the council would be giving the district $15,000 on top of other funds already given to the district totaling $50,000 in 2025. Council members requested documentation for how the $50,000 had been spent, but there were no Livingston Parish Airport District representatives present at the meeting.
According to Mickey McMorris, who spoke on behalf of Parish President Randy Delatte at the council meeting, the FAA study would allow the airport to receive “additional enhancements” and federal funding.
District Chairwoman Delia Taylor told UWK that airports must apply to be recognized in the FAA’s system, which is what this study is doing. The National Program of Integrated Aviation System (NPIAS) identifies over 3,000 public-use airports included in the national airport system, along with their roles and both the amount and type of federal funding they’re eligible for, according to the FAA.
“I guess my issue with it is since 2018, we’ve given them $35,000 a year,” Chavers said at the meeting. “It’s frustrating that we’re using local tax dollars to continue to pay for this airport. I’m not against this airport, but we have to stop using local tax dollars of our residents to pay for this thing.”
At this point, the Livingston Parish airport does not qualify for federal funding because it’s not in the system, which Taylor said would “make our local tax dollars go further.”
Taylor said that the airport district went before the parish president and council last year to discuss funds to help get the airport into the NPIAS program, which could be a process of around two years.
The district is breaking up the survey into what Taylor called “chapters,” with this additional $15,000 going towards the second chapter of the district’s plan for the survey. For the first portion of things, the district used money in its own account plus funds allotted by the Livingston Parish Council. Currently, the FAA already has findings from the first portion in hand, she said.
“We’re taking this very almost chapter-by-chapter approach to get this study fully put together,” Taylor explained. “In the first chapter, the forecast has been completed, and it’s actually sitting over at the FAA office and in the Southwest office in Dallas. We’re having them review it before we even go to chapter two, if you will. We want to make sure we’ve dotted all the I’s, crossed all our T’s, and that we’re moving in the right vein before we go to chapter two.”
At this point, the district is ready to start its second chapter “pretty soon,” and the funds approved by the parish council will be used to pay the planners and engineers working on the study.
After this portion is completed, there is still at least one additional part that will need to be conducted. Altogether, Taylor expects that the whole study will cost around $80,000.
Because it can take around two years for airports to be eligible for federal funds, the district wanted to start the process to get into NPIAS sooner than later, Taylor said. After the FAA accepts the study, there is often a delay from when an airport can begin receiving funds, she added.
A portion of airline ticket fees go to the FAA for not only things like paying employees but to be used under NPIAS to maintain airports. Once the Livingston Parish airport is in the system, it will be eligible to receive those funds. “You may never use our airport, but you will be bringing in money,” Taylor said of those buying airline tickets.
McMorris called the $15,000 a “minor investment” to bringing economic development into the parish.
“It would be a disaster to hold it up at this point,” said Councilman John Wascom.
Construction to begin
The Livingston Parish Airport District has started advertising for bids for the construction of the airport’s runway and apron, and Taylor expects that bids will be in by Christmas. Once those are in, the state must then review and approve the bids before construction can start.
She believes that by early January 2026, construction on the runway and apron can begin.
“If you drove out there today, you would be amazed to see how much work we’ve done. We’ve done all this groundwork and drainage work that has to be done prior to clearing the land. We’ve got a mile stretch of cleared runway right now.”
Overall, Taylor is excited for the next steps for the airport, which have been a long process. After land was donated to the parish, the district started work in 2016 with the goal of getting the airport created. Groundbreaking took place in October 2024.
“It’s been quite a process; it’s a very time-laden process, because everything that we do has to be reviewed and approved, either at the state or federal level,” Taylor said.
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