By ROY WOOD

Proponents of the Osoyoos airport were back before town council on Monday looking for about $15,000 to help pay for a business plan for the facility that council had been considering closing altogether.

Glen Harris, president of the Osoyoos Airport Development Society, told council that since it last appeared before council in January, the society has struggled with creating a business plan. The group came to the conclusion that such a task is best left to professionals and have winnowed the field to two contending consultants.

InterVISTAS and MMM Group have made bids ranging from $25,000 to $30,000 to create the business plan, which will look at land use and feasibility.

The society is asking the town to pay for half the fee and to appoint a councillor and/or a staff member to the society’s steering committee.

Harris said, “(The society) “would like to see the town be a bit more on board” with the airport re-development.

Looking at the broader picture, Councillor CJ Rhodes mentioned an earlier report that suggested that upgrading the airport would involve “staggering costs.” He wondered how it would be possible to convince members of the public that such an expense would be worth paying.

Society member Tom McHale told Rhodes that the eventual cost of upgrading the airport would likely be in the area of $5 million, but it would be “down the road five or 10 years.”

Included in the longer-term improvements would be: extending and widening the runway; lighting systems; perimeter fencing; buildings; and miscellaneous costs.

To bring the facility up to “useful” standards in the short term would likely cost between $1 million and $2 million, McHale said.