PITTSFIELD TOWNSHIP, MI - A new report is reviving an old debate over plans to extend the runway at the Ann Arbor Municipal Airport, a move some of the airport's neighbors and others have long opposed.

The new document, called the 2016 Revised Draft Environmental Assessment, is dated from October, but was not released for public viewing by the Michigan Department of Transportation's Office of Aeronautics until mid-January.

It's an update to a 2010 version and seeks to address comments from the Federal Aviation Administration, as well as other concerned parties, over issues of safety, practicality, necessity and the potential environmental impact of the expansion project.

The Ann Arbor City Council voted 8-3 in 2010 to remove the airport expansion item from the city's 2011-2016 capital improvements plan.

Matt Kulhanek, airport manager, said the initial proposed expansion and shift of the runway has not been altered. The plan set forth still involves expanding the runway from its current length of 3,500 feet to 4,300 feet.

"The revised (environmental assessment) did not change what was proposed at all in regards to the project or construction or length or anything like that," Kulhanek said. "The net increase is 800 feet and they would be shifting an additional 150 feet away from State Road."

Kulhanek said the shift of 150 feet from the northeastern end of the runway is necessary for a couple of reasons.

"Right now, there is a blind spot that the tower has, the FAA air traffic control tower," he said. "They lose aircraft that are stacking, basically ready to take off out of their vision. And so by shifting the 150 feet to the southwest, that problem (would be fixed), allowing (the tower) to see those vehicles there, those aircraft there."

The other reason has to do with the runway's proximity to State Street/Road, which Kulhanek said MDOT has been looking at widening for a number of years.

"The Road Commission wants to widen State Road there, and right now they would not be able to do that on the existing center line of the road," Kulhanek said. "They would have to shift the whole road over to the east."

Mandy Grewal, Pittsfield Township supervisor, said, however, that the planned expansion of State Street does not require acquisition of additional right-of-way from the airport.

"The adopted State Street corridor improvement plan shifts the center line in the Ellsworth/State Street vicinity such that no encroachment is required onto the Ann Arbor airport property," Grewal said.

"As such, the current runway will not impede any plans to expand or otherwise improve the State Street corridor, as envisioned and delineated in the State Street Development & Tax Increment Financing Plan, adopted by the Pittsfield Township Board of Trustees in 2014."

Though the new report states the existing airport is considered safe, according to current FAA and MDOT standards, it also asserts the proposed extension and shift of the primary runway would provide a configuration that would enhance safety, while allowing the effective accommodation of critical aircraft -- namely small B-II category aircraft -- that presently use the facility.

That category of aircraft includes medium-sized business jets like the Cessna Citation XLS and medium-sized twin-turboprop aircraft such as the Beechcraft King Air 200.

A 2005 Cessna Citation Bravo, which is comparable in size to the Cessna Citation XLS. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

Opponents of the project, such as the Committee for Preserving Community Quality, a grassroots group of residents living in Ann Arbor and Pittsfield and Lodi townships, have concerns over the airport's desire to expand.

They maintain expanding the runway by 800 feet would not only be expensive -- the 2010 cost estimate was $1.5 million, most of which would have been federally funded -- but would also lead to a less-safe airport.

In a document submitted to MDOT on Feb. 10, the citizens group and Pittsfield Township pointed out that of the Ann Arbor airport's base population of 183 aircraft, only 14 are B-II category aircraft.

The document also asserts that between 2009 and 2016 there were four years (2012, 2013, 2015, 2016) in which B-II aircraft did not use the airport for more than 500 operations, the FAA threshold for determining whether there is "substantial use."

Those opposed to the expansion surmise that a more appropriate solution would be for these aircraft to be based at another larger airport, such as Willow Run in Van Buren Township.

The revised environmental assessment weighs Willow Run as an alternative to expanding the runway, but ultimately dismisses the option because "a large number of operators of business aircraft value the close proximity of (the Ann Arbor airport) to their corporate offices and business contacts over the larger facility at Willow Run."

The two airports are 12 miles apart, equating with a drive time of 15-20 minutes.

According to the Committee for Preserving Community Quality, the expanded runway would place citizens in the surrounding community at risk with aircraft taking off and landing 950 feet closer to residential areas.

The group also surmises larger and heavier aircraft will be attracted to the airport if it were to expand its primary runway, which could lead to increased noise pollution in the area.

Myriad concerns over other environmental factors -- potential adverse effects on an aquifer on airport property, and whether an expanded runway would increase the risk of a Canada geese-related aviation accident, for example -- remain a part of the discussion.

Kulhanek said airport officials will be reviewing comments like those from the CPCQ and Pittsfield Township, as well as feedback they receive from the Department of Environmental Quality, the Department of Natural Resources and other agencies, on the draft report over the next few months.

A 30-day public comment period on the report ended Feb. 10. MDOT held a meeting on Jan. 26 at Ann Arbor city hall to receive public input.

Once comments are reviewed and updates to the report, if any, are made, the document will need to be approved by both the FAA and the state before it can be presented to the Ann Arbor City Council as a tool in the decision-making process concerning whether to move the runway expansion project forward.

Mayor Christopher Taylor, for his part, said he is open to listening to all sides of the debate.

"Right now the (airport) control tower has an obstructed view of the runway. This is obviously not optimal," Taylor said. "I also understand the objections of proximate residents, and others, to runway extension."

Kulhanek said he knows the project is one that will create plenty of passion and emotion from community members, as it has in the past.

"What we want to do is just make sure that we've answered all the questions, so that when this does go to council they have an opportunity to make an informed decision," he said.