Opposition urging interim financing for Stephenville Airport

Marshall Dean, MHA for the District of The Straits & White Bay North and Opposition Municipal Affairs Critic, is calling on the provincial government to provide interim financing to the Stephenville Airport Corporation until a recently submitted Airport Business Plan is evaluated and a longer-term funding decision is reached.

The Stephenville Airport Corporation has been lobbying the provincial and federal governments for money to expand its fuel storage capacity to accommodate larger airlines and upgrade aging infrastructure.  The airport is designated as an alternate fueling stop to Gander for international flights en route to Europe.   

“This international airport is an important piece of infrastructure to Stephenville and region and deserves to be given a fighting chance to survive,” says Dean. “This is a facility that is already in place and operating and it now requires a small investment to stabilize its operations in the short-term until the bigger picture of financing is addressed.”

Dean points out that the Stephenville Council has provided up to a $400,000 investment last year to keep the airport running through the winter months and assist with the business plan. “The Williams government owes it to the town and the region to assist the airport to become a viable business venture, given that the devastating loss of the Stephenville mill five years ago occurred under its watch.”

It is also noteworthy, says Dean, that in a recent Oil and Gas study identifying Opportunities in the Western Region released by the department of Natural Resources, one of the recommendations was to Maintain and upgrade infrastructure specific to the needs of potential hydrocarbon projects, including wharves and air facilities at Corner Brook and Stephenville .

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