CEDAR CITY — Cedar City Regional Airport is up for a grant to expand its holding room, which is currently “a little too small,” to accommodate 200 passengers instead of the current 45.

On Dec. 7, Cedar City airport manager, Nick Holt, presented plans to potentially expand the Cedar City Regional Airport to Cedar City Council members.

According to information included in the council packet, airport staff have collaborated with Jviation, an aviation engineering and construction management firm, and the Federal Aviation Administration to expand the airport’s holding room, where passengers wait before boarding their flight.

“Our current hold room is extremely small and tight for the passengers waiting for the 50-passenger jet that is currently operating out of Cedar City,” the packet reads. “As the room is currently configured, we have 45 chairs in the holding room that are shoulder to shoulder and when the flight is full, there is standing room only.”

The new design reportedly will accommodate 200 passengers and allow for social distancing, Holt told Cedar City News, adding that he hopes this need will justify the use of funds and prompt the FAA to approve the grant.

Expanding the holding room also would allow the airport to accept larger aircraft, which may become necessary if SkyWest Airlines and others continue to phase out their 50-passenger jets, Holt said.

Other improvements include expanding the one-stall restroom into two bathrooms with multiple stalls and a corridor approved by the Transportation Security Administration that would allow flyers to exit directly into the baggage claim. The baggage claim also would be expanded and include a new baggage carousel, Holt said.

Additionally, the TSA checkpoint would be expanded, Holt said. The wall would be moved approximately 3 feet, allowing the airport to install a piece of equipment that would scan travelers as they walk through “down the road.”

The expansion would also accommodate those with disabilities and offer service animal pet relief areas, the packet states.

City Council members were asked to choose one of two designs, in order for airport staff to continue collaborating with Jviation and create a scope of work and draft justification documents that would be used to secure funding, Holt said.

“There is still a lot of work to be completed before we can start construction, but we are hopeful that this project will be able to be completed in the next couple of years,” he said.

“So, we’re crossing our fingers that (the FAA) will be on board and that this project will continue to move forward,” he added.

Council members voted for the second option on Dec. 14, which featured a peaked roof with a request for minor changes to the holding room’s design to include the slanted wall from the other design, Holt said. The currently available concept drawing is an early draft and will change.

Cedar City is eligible for the grant funds and needs to submit qualifying projects, Holt said.

“This would be a good project for us to be able to use those funds on and it would benefit our whole community,” he said.

If the grant is not approved, Holt said the next step would be to find other funding sources to complete the project.

Holt has been at the airport for about four years and said the minute he arrived, he knew the holding room was a “little too small.”

“But I haven’t started talking with anybody about it except for – it’s been probably the last year that we’ve had some casual conversations with the FAA about it to see … if they feel that would be an acceptable project for Cedar City or not,” he said.

If the project is approved, construction will begin outside the building’s current footprint, allowing work to be completed without disrupting normal operations, Holt said. After which, the interior walls would be taken down, only disrupting travelers a small amount of time, depending on what time frame the airport, TSA and FAA deem acceptable.

Those interested in watching the discussion from Dec. 7 can visit the Cedar City Council’s YouTube channel here. For Dec. 14, click here.

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