A new hanger capable of holding 10 small planes is coming to Concord Municipal Airport in response to a widespread push for more private aviation facilities.

“We know many of New Hampshire’s general aviation airports have a waiting list for hangar space,” wrote Carol Niewola, senior aviation planner for the state Department of Transportation, in response to a Monitor query.

General aviation is the term for planes and flight services not related to commercial airlines or the military. She said several small airports are building or planning to build more hangars to hold small planes that otherwise are stored by being tied down in a parking area, exposed to the elements.

On Monday night, the City Council signed a lease with a private group to build the 11,550-square-foot metal hangar at the end of a closed runway beside the Army Air National Guard Facility. That runway will be used as a taxiway for airplanes from the new hangar.

The project must still get final approval from the Planning Board.

The hangar will be in one of several development zones within the airport that the city has designated as part of its desire to have more aviation-related  business. 

“This (the airport) is such a vital resource for the city. This makes it more economically viable for the future,” said Charley Cummings, CEO of Walden Mutual Bank, the principal of the private group which will build and operate the hangar.

Unlike existing facilities at the airport, the new hangar will be accessed from the east side via a new entryway built on an existing easement through the parking lot of Novis Engineering at 18 Chenell Drive. That is the only development zone on that side of the airport.

“We’re extremely limited in what’s developable because of the conservation management agreements,” said Timothy Thompson, assistant director of community development for Concord. Only a couple more areas are available for development, which under FAA rules must be related to aviation.

Concord airport encompasses almost 700 acres but large portions are covered by easements to protect environmentally sensitive areas, notably pine barrens that support the endangered Karner blue butterfly.

As proposed, the hangar would basically be a garage for small planes, with 10 units rented or sold to owners of private aircraft. It would be a relatively bare-bones facility as compared to the large, elegant hangar built and owned by United Therapeutics. 

A report by city staff said the hangar would pay $11,970 in rent to the city and around $20,000 in annual property taxes, about $7,000 of which would go to Concord. 

The biggest development project slated for the airport is the construction of a new terminal to replace the current building, which was built in 1938 and renovated in 1961, and has code violations and safety deficiencies. The state said in February 2024 that it would receive a $2.5 million federal grant to help with the work. The project has been on hold since. 

General aviation in the U.S. has largely rebounded from a pandemic-induced slump. The General Aviation Manufacturers Association says shipments of new private and corporate planes and helicopters in 2024 was higher than in 2019.

David  Brooks can be reached at dbrooks@cmonitor.com