WC8 – Washington County Airport Continues Site Improvements

A Washington County Airport Manager Danny Wilson reports the new entrance is waiting on asphalt. The grading and compaction have been done and the pavement should be laid by the first week of November, weather permitting.

Some tree removal and tree trimming are planned and will be done by next Spring, depending on weather.

In the past two weeks, the Purcell Tire Hangar was cut loose, loaded on two flat bed trailers and moved to a new location. The move was made with the building intact.

Airport Board President Sam Rhodes coordinated the move of the building over the past several months. The County Airport had checked into the move and received a bid of $30,000. The discussion was the money wasn’t there for the move, so what to do. Rhodes enlisted several people to help with the project and reported great cooperation from many different individuals.

The Purcells, Bob and Juanita, volunteered the hangar to go to the airport first, then also donated the concrete for the new foundation the building was to be moved to.

Bob Purcell has enjoyed airplanes and flying for years and wanted to support improvement at WC8. He also understood with the development at the airport, the hangar needed to be moved.

J.V. Construction did the concrete work for the new hangar site. Footings and flat work and the bolts were set for the building.

The plans were made, the excavating and concrete work done, and the collection of essentials was begun.

The plan was to weld the building together using I beam steel and braces, place the building on diesel flat bed trailers and move it to the new location. The plan included a lot of details that had to work together to make it successful.

Manager Danny Wilson researched the site and the new site, contacting former manager Pat Campbell to located underground wire, plumbing, etc. He worked with Jviation engineering services to get paperwork filed with the F.A.A. in reference to the hangar elevation. Wilson worked with the County Commission to get the project approved and endorsed by the County.

Wilson said the County Clerk, Jenny Allen, and her staff kept up with all the invoices and Krista Snyder with the I.D.A. managed and organized the funding for the project.

The I beams were loaned for use by Alva Gilliam and Gary Gilliam. They were beams from the old Brown Shoe Factory building. The 1st District crew picked up the beams and got them to the airport. The beams were welded into place by Gene Bell from Jasper, Arkansas with the help of Sam Rhodes, Ivan Deweez, Danny Wilson and Barry Brown.

The flatbed trailers were rented from Hazelwood and Nixon Brothers Hauling, Shane and Brandon, picked up and delivered them. Potosi Lumber Company loaned the airport a portable welder, a skid loader, a lull loader for heavy lifting along with several essential tools as well as supplying many needed parts.

The building was ready to move after four days of preparation. Welding beams, cutting bolts, securing wiring, pulling pins and jacking and leveling on the trailers. Ivan Storz helped with technical information on the hangar. Jim Cain and Jim Carter worked on the hangar door controls in preparation to move.

The day of the move came, Saturday, Oct. 10th. It was all hands on deck with several volunteers getting together at the Airport early to start. Shane Nixon and Brandon Nixon were driving the trucks, having to work in tandem to try and keep the building square on the trailers as they moved from one foundation to another. Mike Nixon directed traffic, helping Shane and Brandon stay together as they moved.

The move was a day long project with several small adjustments along the way. The new foundation, located next to the Washington County Airport Terminal faces West/North West and has a concrete approach. A swale was put in the concrete to keep water out of the hangar. The small dip in the concrete proved to be a challenge as the building approached the new foundation. The swale dropped the building a matter of inches that made a difference as the corners approached the foundation short walls. Bob Hahn, who was on hand at the move, suggested chocking blocks to raise the height of the trailers. It worked and the building was over the foundation and walls.

The Nixons did a good job driving, backing up the building ‘blind’ with Mike Nixon, Sam Rhodes and Barry Brown all helping with direction. The guys driving couldn’t see anything behind them because of the size of the building so they had to trust each other and their ‘directors’.

The building was in place over the new foundation by about 3:30 p.m. The trucks were unhooked and the building set free on the trailers. The fine adjustment of getting the building to the right place over the bolts was done by Barry Brown in the loader with Sam Rhodes and Gene Bell giving direction from inside the structure. A push on a corner and a push on the side and the hangar was on the mark. Jacks and blocks were used to lift and lower to get on the bolts.

J.V. Construction did a good job with the new foundation as every bolt was in the right spot for the building to be placed. Sam Rhodes said Tyler Juliette, Tim Short and staff of J.V. did well with everything being precise.

Some of the crew that was on hand for the day included Danny Wilson, Sam Rhodes, Barry Brown, Bob Hahn, Eli Deweez, Reggie and Dee Rowe, Sam Jr. and Alice Rhodes, Kris Richards along with others that came and went.

Alice Rhodes, Dee Rowe and others helped prepare food for the volunteers throughout the day. The Purcells helped provide lunch for the workers.

Sam Rhodes, Board President, said the airport needed to thank Ameren along with their employees Mark Thurman, Gabe Nicholson and Lynn Portell for the help on disconnecting the hangar and plans on the reconnect in the new location.

Also, another thanks to Red Wing Shoe Company and Katie Schwent who previously donated a truck with a lift gate that was used extensively to move equipment and parts during the project.

Rhodes went on to thank the Airport Board and everyone who had been involved. He also said, “This thing wouldn’t have happened had it not been for the cooperation of a bunch of people. We thank Barry Brown for all his help, from designing and helping figure out how to do it to actually make it happen. Everyone’s done great.”

The Washington County Airport, WC8, has been diligently working on improvements and these are just two examples of projects to benefit the facility and the community.

ew short wall foundation was poured by J.V. Construction and furnished by Purcell Tire next to the Airport Terminal in preparation of the hangar move. Here, Shane Nixon and Brandon Nixon drive the diesels that carry the building. Weeks of planning paid off when the hangar was put in place on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 10th. Washington County Airport Board President Sam Rhodes worked with Barry Brown to coordinate the project.