$58K needed to remove fuel tank at Palmer airport in Unity

The Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Unity will pay about $58,000 to dispose of an abandoned fuel tank it removed during a $22 million project to expand its terminal by 32,000 square feet.

A vacant hangar was demolished after the Westmoreland Airshow in August as part of the terminal expansion project. Contractor Allegheny Construction Group Inc. found an abandoned fuel tank during the demolition, said airport Engineer Scott Kunselman.

“We have to get rid of it in a proper manner,” he said.

The 500-gallon underground tank supplied fuel to the hangar’s furnace, said airport authority Executive Director Gabe Monzo. It was removed shortly after the airshow, he said.

The airport had to register the tank with the state Department of Environmental Protection and test the tank’s contents before removing the vessel. It likely contained heating oil, Kunselman said.

Crews then disposed of the contents and removed the tank before testing the surrounding soil to check for leakage or contamination.

No leakage was identified, Kunselman said, but the additional expense brings the hangar removal cost to nearly $2 million.

The Westmoreland County Airport Authority board approved the tank removal cost at a meeting this week.

Related:

• Arnold Palmer airport to start $22M expansion

• Arnold Palmer Regional director says other carriers won’t compete against Spirit at Unity airport

• Spirit Airlines to add flight out of Arnold Palmer Regional Airport through the end of October

The terminal expansion project will increase the TSA screening and baggage claim areas, move hold rooms and Westmoreland County Airport Authority offices, create a new concession space and passenger boarding bridge, refurbish the existing bridge and upgrade restroom facilities and the HVAC system.

The first phase of the project — expansion of the shell of the terminal and the TSA screening space — started on Oct. 28, said airport Engineer Scott Kunselman.

The board approved a series of subcontractors for the terminal expansion and the second phase of its $1.2 million air traffic control tower improvement project.

An elevator will be installed in the control tower to comply with Americans With Disabilities Act. The project is slated to take five months, Kunselman said.

The airport also pushed back the relocation of two of its taxiways until spring, he said. That project is expected to cost $3.5 million.