Valemount’s tiny airport getting minor makeover

The Village of Valemount’s airport could be in for some major changes in the future, but for the time being, only basic improvements are planned.

The facilitiy’s lone runway, located nine kilometres from the village, could be lengthened and widened in the years to come, but village officials are still in the process of studying the possibility. However, airport lighting and improved GPS flight landing equipment will be added in the near future, according to Doug Fleming, Valemount’s chief administrator.

The village is working with Papi, a firm from BC’s Lower Mainland, to evaluate what future demands on the airport might look like.

“The study will identify what kind of demands will be placed on the airport,” he said. Any expectations for future pressure on the airport have a lot to do with the Canoe Mountain 

Resort planned for Valemount. The proposed resort would include a major hotel development, a golf course and a gondola lift. Despite  sod being officially turned earlier this year, little progress has been noted on the ground.

“That (the resort) plays a very big role in future demand on the airport,” said Fleming.   

The planning process began in early this summer and Fleming hopes to have some conclusions about future improvements soon. The short-term changes, meanwhile, are already underway.

Survey work for runway lighting has commenced, but actual installation will not occur until after long-term plans are complete, 

Fleming said.

“We want to give a thought to the future in the case of the runway lengthening or widening.” The lights could be installed by late winter, he said.

While these changes will not allow the airport to accomodate larger aircraft, the changes could bring increased traffic to the facility.

“It will really open the opportunity for planes to land in early evening or in inclement weather,” Fleming said. A DC-6 is the largest aircraft that can currently land inValemount.

The lighting and GPS additions will come with a total price tag of $350,000, a cost that is being covered by the BC government. Any future expansion of the runway would rely on funding from the province and possibly the federal government as well.

An improved Valemount airport could be seen as a new gateway to Jasper National Park if larger flights can land less than an hour’s drive from the park boundary. There have been some very preliminary conversations about the future of the airport between village officials and other communities, including Jasper, according to Fleming.

“We haven’t had any in-depth discussions yet,” he said.”We might be looking to neighbouring areas for support if we do expand.”