SAMBAA K'E/TROUT LAKE
It could be years before Trout Lake has an official opening ceremony for its new airport after the project, which began nearly six years ago, went over budget leaving no money to complete a terminal for the facility.

The new Trout Lake airport runway, pictured here in an aerial view, is without an airport terminal due to the project running out of available money. Officials with the Department of Transportation say there isn't a clear timeline on when construction will begin. - photo courtesy of the Department of Transportation

The $450,000 building, which has already been designed and was part of the original project plans, was never built after the project ended up going close to $2 million over budget.

Trout Lake residents are becoming increasingly frustrated by the government's lack of urgency to complete the terminal, with local MLAs recently attempting to put pressure on cabinet to allocate funding to complete it.

In the legislative assembly on Mar. 4, Nehendeh MLA Kevin Menicoche questioned Transportation Minister Tom Beaulieu about when funding would be made available to start construction on the airport terminal and to pay for an upgrade for snow-clearing equipment for the runway.

"The Trout Lake Airport is a brand new piece of infrastructure which we all should be proud of and the Department of Transportation must properly equip this runway with a proper air terminal building and a proper airport snow blower," said Menicoche.

Menichoche said Trout Lake's chief and council have declined to hold an official opening ceremony at the new airport, as they want to have all the infrastructure in place before it is finally declared complete. "They said if we have a grand opening, then the department will just forget about our need for an airport terminal building and an airport snow blower."

Although there is currently no terminal at the airport, planes have been using the runway since it was completed last fall. Without a terminal building Menicoche said passengers have been left to stand outside in the cold while waiting to board a plane or be picked up after landing.

"Some people have been stranded there and others have struggled as they made their way to the community with their luggage and supplies," he said. "Not to mention the benefits to medical staff as they await a medevac plane."

To date, $11.2 million has gone into the airport, roughly $2 million more than the $9.3 million joint contribution originally pledged for the project by the federal and territorial governments. The funding was supposed to cover the cost of the road to the new airport as well as the apron, the airport itself and the new terminal building. However, Beaulieu said unexpected costs and delays ate up the project's funding.

"At the end we had expended all the money," he said. "We didn't have enough money left in the budget to complete the $450,000 air terminal building, which is designed and ready to go but we didn't have the money to do it."

Beaulieu said the government now has to find the money to complete the project through the regular capital infrastructure budgeting process.

"Our intention is to include this air terminal building in the next cycle of the capital planning process," he said.

The project will not be included until the 2016-2017 budget at the earliest, meaning it could be years before the airport is considered completed.

Delia Chesworth, director of airports for the Department of Transportation, confirmed there is currently no timeline set for when the terminal construction may begin. She attributed the cost overruns to bad weather and the department's attempt to maximize local employment.

"There were some additional costs with that," she said. "There were positive benefits even though it cost a little more. It was good for us to focus on getting the new, longer runway while providing local employment and training.

"We are looking to do everything we can to advance it and deliver it in the near future."

In addition to the need to complete the terminal, Menicoche said the airport needs a new snow blower. He said having the new equipment would make snow-clearing more economical and efficient. Safety considerations, such as quickly removing snow in a medevac type of emergency, must also be part of a needs assessment, he said. Opening the 1,065-metre runway now means larger aircraft, including pressurized King Air medevac planes, can land in the community.

"This is something that they cannot do with the grader that is in the community," Menichoche said.

Beaulieu said the department believes the current snow-clearing equipment will be good enough to do the job, but said they will evaluate the situation after this winter "and see if there were any issues at all with the current equipment that's in the community."

Without space to expand that facility, construction began in September 2009 at a new location.

Located a 2.5-kilometre drive from the community, the new runway is 265 metres longer than the one that opened in 1987 in the heart of Trout Lake.

The new airport will cost $50,000 annually to maintain, a 60 per cent increase over the cost of the old airport.

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