The frontiersman., 1952-07-03
Anti-Administrution Forces Score
 Touchdown in Palmer Airport TUssIe

Anti-administration forces fin ally scored a touchdown last week in the long, drawn out political tussle on the Palmer Airport. The decision of the um- pire, Comptroller General Lind say Warren, resulted in loss to the Territory of S149,922, repre- senting the federal share of the cost of improving the airport.
 The political game was marked by many muddy skirmishes from the fourth estates in Fairbanks, Juneau, Anchorage, and Ketchi- kan to the floors of Congress and the rooms of it's committees. It started way back in 1850. Even before the formal dedication of the Airport in September of that year catcalls from the opposition screamed of collision and ilfla- tionary tactics. Strange gridiron signals such as statehood, Anti Gruening, and population center were the scarcely audible evid- ence of even stranger formation that were screened by the dirt.
 A long play by play ac- count leading up to the Comptroller Generals decision would start back in 1941 when the Northland Pioneer Grange first started to plan for an airport near Palmer. In 1946 cooperation of the local Grange, American Legion, Moose Lodge, MVFCA, and Alaska Rural Re- mobilization Corporation resulted in the incorporation of commit tee composed of representatives of these organizations and called the Palmer Airport Association. Through benefits and local con- tributions of money and labor, construction on the new airport was started in the spring of 1946. The following year the Lee Bill was amended to allow federal aid to airports in Alaska amounting to 75 percent of construction and 25 percent of land acquision costs. Incorporated in the Federal Air ports Act, this amendment was designed to encourage the con- struction of airpofts in the Terri tory as a necessary prerequisite to it's development. Because the people of Palmer on their own initiative had already started an airport on their own, the newly formed Territorial Commission of Aetonautics decided to start Tn Palmer with it's Airport program.
 Application for funds for inn proving the airport was made, but the l949 Territorial legislature failed to pass enabling legislation making matching Territorial funds available. Thus federal ap- proval of the project was defer red.
 Meanwhile, progress on inn provement of the 112-acre air. port site continued through the Airport Association and the Ter ritory. By the end of l948 most of the clearing and grading had been done. There were two run wags larger than that at Merrill Field. An estimated $4,00O worth of labor even more money hao been contributed by local people The Territory had spent S56,O0O for construction at the then low labor rates. By the time the air. port was completed construction costs had zoomed and rates for the same type of labor had al most doubled. The delayed teder- al approval of the project found also a changed picture as far as land values were concerned. Prl- vate construction around the air port quickly boosted the lana values to those commensurate with the changes in land use.
 These normal economic changes were reflected in the appraisal ot the airport for the purpose ot determing the amount of federal aid due. Estimates of the land values varied from the S16O,OOO appraisal made by three local men, James Hurley, M. D. Snod- eras and Jack Maze to the $l2O'- 900 appraisal made by the Dis trict Engineers and the $31,925