$14M terminal to open at southern Illinois airport in fall

MARION, Ill. (AP) - The director of a southern Illinois airport scheduled to open a new $14 million terminal this fall says the project is as much about handling existing capacity as it is about preparing for possible future growth.

Williamson County Regional Airport Director Douglas Kimmel tells the (Carbondale) Southern Illinoisan (http://bit.ly/1TotBQB ) the existing building has trouble accommodating larger charters. The new terminal will replace the existing, 17,000-square-foot facility built in 1972.

About 70 percent of the cost is being paid under the Federal Aviation Administration's Airport Improvement Program designed in part to address capacity.

The airport is the region's sole primary commercial service provider. The terminal is scheduled to open in September.

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Information from: Southern Illinoisan, http://www.southernillinoisan.com