The Boulder City Council on Thursday, Sept. 17, approved an application for a Federal Aviation Administration grant, the latest step in its commitment to keep operating Boulder Municipal Airport after years of debate over the facility’s future.
The city is seeking about $140,000 to reimburse costs associated with a pavement maintenance project planned for late 2026. The city would contribute about $7,000 in matching funds.
In a memo to councilmembers, city officials described approval of the grant as a “prerequisite for meaningful participation” in a state and federal planning process that could impact about $1.9 million in grants for airport projects in 2027 and 2028.
The council voted 6-2 to approve the grant. Supporting it were Mayor Aaron Brockett, Mayor Pro Tem Tara Winer and Councilmembers Taishya Adams, Matt Benjamin, Rob Kaplan and Tina Marquis. Opposing it were Councilmembers Ryan Schuchard and Nicole Speer.
This week’s vote follows the council’s 8-1 decision in July to reaffirm its commitment to operate the airport indefinitely. The vote cleared the way for the city to pursue FAA grants that officials have said could prevent the airport from ever closing.
As part of the July decision, the council required councilmembers, rather than only the city manager, to approve the new FAA grant application. Future applications are not expected to require council approval.
The July vote also prompted Councilmember Mark Wallach, a longtime advocate for repurposing the airport land, to resign, saying the decision conflicted with his values. Critics of the airport have long wanted the city to repurpose the land for housing and have raised concerns about aircraft noise and lead pollution. They also have argued Boulder should not accept federal money that could encumber the 179-acre property in perpetuity.
Boulder last accepted an FAA grant in May 2020, according to city officials. The city has argued it could close the airport by 2040 if it did not accept any more grants. The FAA contends Boulder is already obligated to operate the airport in perpetuity under grants it accepted decades ago, an interpretation the city disputes.
In 2024, the city sued the FAA to determine whether it could legally close the airport by 2040 or later. In September 2025, a U.S. District Court judge dismissed the lawsuit, largely on procedural grounds and without addressing the core legal questions.
City Attorney Teresa Tate has told councilmembers that accepting new FAA grants comes with obligations that run in perpetuity, potentially weakening the city’s argument that it retains the authority to close the airport.
The Boulder Municipal Airport, which began as a dirt landing strip in the 1920s, primarily serves private pilots, flight trainees, gliders and researchers. It has also been used for emergency operations during fires and floods, although city officials have said wildfire response relies primarily on Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport.
In 2024, residents collected thousands of signatures for two proposed ballot measures that sought to decommission the airport and repurpose the land for mixed-use development, including housing. But organizers withdrew the measures after the city sued the FAA, seeking clarity on whether it could shut down the airport by 2040. After the case was dismissed, the city did not appeal.
The city’s application for federal money comes as slowing sales tax growth and rising costs have contributed to a projected $6.3 million gap in the city’s 2027 General Fund budget, according to city officials.
Without FAA funding, the city has projected an airport budget deficit of about $7 million to $27 million by 2041, according to a recent city financial analysis.
