Airport runway not up to snuff 
by Brian Wilson
The Star News
October 8, 2009 —  When the last dump trucks rolled off the service road at the Taylor County Airport a few weeks ago, airport manager Jim Wood breathed a sigh of relief at that phase of the project being complete. The smooth blacktop runway surface looks perfect. However, looks can sometimes be deceiving and the Federal Aviation Administration, which is footing the lion’s share of the runway expansion work, has some particular standards about compressions and weight ratings.
“The surface did not meet the compression specifications,” Wood said. Unlike highways which typically have a wider margin in their specifications, Woods explains the FAA and Wisconsin Bureau of Aeronautics are tighter with their specifications largely because of the increased risks associated with the runway surface failing on landing or takeoff. Woods noted that with the longer runway, the county could see business traffic from planes weighing up to 90,000 pounds. This would be great for the fuel sales and larger business customers served by the airport, but requires a runway surface able to meet the needed compaction ratings.
As a result, the subcontractor for the runway paving, American Asphalt, was back at the airport on October 7 grinding the less than a month old surface off and prepping it to lay down a new blacktop surface which will then be tested to see if it meets compaction requirements. According to Wood, the cost of the extra work is $150,000 to $175,000 and is being picked up by the contractor.

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