(Photo: Rocky Mountain House Airport Facebook page)

By Adam Ophus

Building new terminal building

Needs assessment eyes terminal building options at Rocky Airport

May 26, 2021 | 3:04 PM

Discussions continue on what to do about a possible new terminal building for the Rocky Mountain House Airport.

The Town of Rocky and Clearwater County jointly own the airport with the Town currently acting as managing partner for operations and budgeting.

Considerations are being made to replace the current two-story, 1,800 square foot terminal building that was built over 40 years ago.

Councillors noted that the basement of the building is in such disrepair that it is not currently fully utilized.

Three building plan options have been presented with costs ranging from $770,000 to $1.14 million to be shared between the town and county.

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The Town of Rocky Mountain House had asked that Clearwater County support them in conducting a needs assessment and evaluation of airport and terminal usage statistics prior to selecting a new building design.

County Councillor Tim Hoven said he opposes simply going off of what the terminal was, and more for what it could be.

“If no one wants one, we shouldn’t put any money into it. If people want a place to do aerobatics shows, then we should put that in. We should do what people want,” he suggested.

Reeve Cammie Laird agreed with Hoven, stating they shouldn’t just look at what they had and more towards what they need.

Some such suggestions have been to incorporate a flight school or open it to aerobatics groups.

The suggestion was made to change the assessment to focus on the future as well and not just what the airport was. The motion passed unanimously by council.