MOUND, La. — Work to strengthen a ramp at the Vicksburg-Tallulah Regional Airport to better accommodate a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers airplane should begin in about two months if all goes according to plan, said project engineer Terry Pullin.

Pullin, who works for Monroe-based Denmon Engineering, opened five bids for the work Tuesday, along with airport general manager Randy Woods and representatives of some of the bidding companies.

The Corps has housed a 73,000-pound Gulfstream III at VTR since 2002, Woods said. Over the years, the weight of the plane has worked ruts into asphalt leading to the plane’s hangar, said Pullin.

VTR was notified in June it could receive anywhere from $700,000 to $1 million in FAA funding to strengthen the ramp and area leading to the airport’s taxiway. Denmon Engineering was hired to get bids before an Aug. 1 deadline to secure funds.

Bids for the work were submitted by Amethyst Construction of West Monroe; Camo Construction Company Inc. of Vidalia, La.; D&J Construction of West Monroe; The Mabry Company of Ruston, La.; and Plus Concrete Inc. of Chesterfield, Mich. The bid was split into three portions of the total project, said Pullin, as it is still unknown the exact amount of dollars available. The base bid was to cover 2,311-square-yards of concrete to be laid immediately in front of the hangar in which the Corps plane is stored. The second and third portions of the bid were for an additional 2,222-square-yards of concrete and 1,108 tons of asphalt, which would strengthen adjoining areas of the ramp where the plane is fueled and prepared for flight. 

Mabry Company came in with the lowest total bid — $671,829.22 for all three portions of work. The next lowest bid came from Camo Construction, at $791,750.31, while the rest ranged up to just more than $1 million.

When completed, the strengthened ramp will be able to withstand an airliner weighing 60,000 pounds per wheel, said Pullin. The FAA funds require no match by the airport, however, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development must supply a 5 percent match.

The bids will be reviewed by the FAA and LDOT, and a decision will likely come within 30 to 45 days, said Pullin. Once under bid, the contracted company will have 60 working days to complete whatever amount of work is approved by the FAA, he added.

Woods said the goal is to strengthen ramps and areas around the airport’s T-hangar and three private hangars.

“This will probably be a several year project,” said Woods. “We’ll do whatever we can this year, and then a year or two later hopefully get some more funds to complete the project.”

Opened in 1993, VTR is owned and funded by Vicksburg, Warren County, Tallulah and Madison Parish. It is open seven days a week once again after reducing operations to three days in  April due to runway work. Work continues on lights, and runway upgrading tentatively scheduled to take place Aug. 10 may require the airport to close for a few days. However, Woods said it is currently open 24 hours. The renovation is being financed by some $4 million in FAA grants. When complete, the parallel taxiway will supplement a 5,000-foot runway.

*

Contact Steve Sanoski at ssanoski@vicksburgpost.com