HOULTON, Maine — Removing snow from the Houlton International Airport will now be a little bit easier thanks to the acquisition of a new plow truck.
On Monday, the town acquired a 2018 Western Star plow truck as part of a grant through the Federal Aviation Administration.
Airport Manager Ben Torres said the plow truck will be used exclusively at the airport to clear snow from the taxiway and two runways, as well as clearing snow to the National Weather Service’s weather station.
The town’s share of the $270,000 vehicle was just 5 percent (or roughly $13,500). An additional 5 percent was paid for by the Maine Department of Transportation, while the Federal Aviation Administration covered 90 percent of the purchase price.
“The airport receives an allowance of grant money of about $150,000 every year,” Torres said. “How we use that is spelled out in our master plan, for what we are going to do over the next five to 20 years.”
Torres said the airport can “roll-over” its allowance for up to five years if it wishes to save funds for a larger project.
The new vehicle replaces a 2000 plow truck. That vehicle will be kept as a backup unit at the airport, unless the town wishes to buy the vehicle from the airport. Stewart said the vehicle would need to be appraised, and if it is valued at less than $5,000 it would be given to the town.
Any amount above $5,000 would require the town to either pay that amount, or have it deducted from the following year’s community allotment to the airport, Torres added.
Torres said that while the new vehicle may only be used to remove snow at the airport, it can be used in other parts of the town in the event of a major emergency.
“In a perfect world, it would be nice to see the old vehicle wind up at the public works department to be used as a backup for them,” he said.
