Over the last decade, cities across America have faced both municipal and military airport closures with significant concern. With job losses, thousands of acres of potentially fallow land and a tangle of jurisdictions looming before them, the federal government, local authorities and developers have found some surprising new uses for old airports—everything from housing and parks to paintball ranges and a foster care center. No matter what the reuse, airports provide unique opportunities for large scale redevelopment because they are vast tracts of land located in or close to large urban areas.

A Base for Redevelopment One such redevelopment story can be found in Rantoul, Illinois at the former site of Chanute Air Force Base. Closed in September 1993, residents of Rantoul and its surrounding area feared the worst. The 2,310-acre site had housed a training facility for fighter pilots and support personnel. The Congressional Budget Office speculated that the base closure would cost the local economy $340 million a year. In fact, the base closure has actually contributed to an upsurge in the local economy—within four years of the base closing, retail sales in Rantoul rose 15 percent and unemployment was halved, dropping to three percent—all credited to the base’s redevelopment. ...

You need to register to view the rest of the article. Click here to subscribe.