City officials in Rochelle held a ceremony yesterday at the Municipal Airport for the expansion of the runway along with the new taxiway. The project totaled 3.1 million dollars.
The runway has been extended 775 feet. It now totals just over 5,000 feet.
The new taxiway is 13 hundred feet.
Gredco Director Jason Anderson said that the longer runway means that bigger planes can now land at the airport.
There are currently 4 businesses at the airport at the present time which includes the Chicagoland Skydiving Center.
Dr. Susan Shea, Director of the Division of Aeronautics for the Illinois Department of Transportation, also attended yesterday's ceremony. She also stressed that more aircrafts can now land at Koritz Field in the future.
Anderson talked about the future growth at the airport. This includes more hangars and widening the runway for heavier planes.
Dr. Shea said that Governor Quinn knew that this project would work for this airport due to the community support.
Funds from the federal government totaled 2.1 million dollars for the runway work and the taxiway while the state had a figure of $750,000. The city's costs were around $250,000.
Air traffic has tripled at Koritz Field in the past year.
