Columbus to build new airport tower

The city of Columbus is planning a new control tower at the Columbus Municipal Airport, with the help of the Cummins Foundation Architecture Program.

A new 100-foot tall tower will replace the more than 80-year-old tower at the airport, at a cost of about $11.5 million dollars.

According to the city, Columbus will be working with the Woolpert engineering firm on the structural design. Woolpert and the airport are working to secure federal grant funding for the project.

Brian Payne, airport director for the city said that the existing building is in dire need of replacement. The new tower will meet current Federal Aviation Administration standards for including sighting, backup cooling and power, security, fire and life safety, and FAA equipment.

Funding from Cummins will allow a world-class architect or firm to design the structure.

The city and the Cummins Foundation have narrowed the list to five contenders for the design:

Studio: indigenous, New Mexico
 Snow Kreilich, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Marlon Blackwell Architects, Fayetteville, Arkansas
SO – IL Architects, Brooklyn, New York
Howeler + Yoon, Boston, Massachusetts

Jim Schacht, vice president of corporate responsibility for Cummins Inc. and CEO of the Cummins Foundation said that the tower will serve as an example of the “community’s continuing commitment to innovation, art, and design.”