Hot on the heels of Labor Day’s double fatality plane crash, 16th District United States Congressman Don Manzullo 
has announced a $1.5 million grant to
“help offset the costs of a major improvement program that involves construction of a parallel taxiway and re-alignment of Pyott Road away from the runway.”
The entire press release follows:
Manzullo Announces $1.5 Million Federal
Grant to Improve Safety at LITH Airport[WASHINGTON] Congressman Don Manzullo (IL-16) today announced that the Lake in the Hills Airport has received a $1.5 million federal grant to help improve safety for pilots, motorists and residents in surrounding neighborhoods.
The grant from the Federal Aviation Administration will be used to help offset the costs of a major improvement program that involves construction of a parallel taxiway and re-alignment of Pyott Road away from the runway.
The airport was initially designed as a private airport, and Pyott Road and the parallel taxiway are too close to the runway. The safety improvements are required for the airport to continue functioning as a public airport and as an FAA-designated reliever airport to O’Hare International Airport for general aviation.
The grant award followed a meeting Manzullo hosted in Washington D.C. with Lake in the Hills officials and FAA officials a few months ago to discuss the grant request and the overall improvement project. Specifically, LITH officials will use the $1.5 million federal grant to purchase land for the new parallel taxiway. The airport has received other state and federal grants to fund the realignment of Pyott Road.
“This federal grant will help fund improvements that will enhance safety for pilots flying in and out of the airport as well as motorists and residents on the ground,” Manzullo said. “Lake in the Hills Airport is a great airport for recreational pilots as well as business travelers and a tremendous economic development tool to help lure industries and good-paying jobs to McHenry County. I congratulate Lake in the Hills and thank the FAA for acknowledging the necessary safety improvements at the airport and agreeing to help fund them.”
Lake in the Hills Village President Ed Plaza added, “We are grateful for the assistance of Congressman Manzullo in this ongoing project. This is another prime example of how local and federal officials who work together can accomplish important projects that benefit the community. Our airport is not just Lake in the Hills but an economic engine for all of McHenry County.”
Killed in the crash were the plane’s pilot, Steven M. Hildebrand, 49, of Fox River Grove, and his Barrington passenger, David A. Burdine, 51.