The Colorado Department of Local Affairs’ Energy and Mineral Impact Assistance Fund grant program announced on Tuesday over $1.6 million in funding awarded for five projects across the Yampa Valley.

The program provides financial support to local governments affected by mineral and energy development, aiming to help communities that experience social or economic changes due to the extraction, processing or conversion of minerals and fossil fuels. Funding comes from the state severance tax on energy and mineral production, as well as a partial share of royalties paid to the federal government for mining and drilling of minerals and mineral fuels on federally owned land.

Craig received two grants of $50,000 and $554,760 for a raw water control valve and water line replacement, respectively.

“During spring, there are high water levels in the river, so the plant needs to be able to control the amount of water entering the plant facility to prevent flooding,” said Craig Mayor Chris Nichols of the $50k grant.

“The DOLA grant of $554,760 was a 50% match for the replacement of 1,386 linear feet of old iron pipe with a new 10-inch main on 10th Street,” said Nichols. “The entire project is estimated at $1,109,520.”

Steamboat Springs was awarded $124,000 for childcare and workforce housing construction documents.

“The grant goes a long way in helping the City and County progress the design to 100% Design Development, which is roughly a $500K cost,” said City Manager Tom Leeson. “It is important to progress the design to this level so we can obtain overall cost estimates to determine project feasibility.”

Most notably, Yampa Valley Regional Airport received $800,000 for the construction of Taxiway B, an existing taxiway built years ago that is currently “not wide enough or strong enough to accommodate the size of private and executive jets” that fly to the airport, said Airport Director Kevin Booth.

This is the third grant the Taxiway B project has received, and the second from DOLA, which previously awarded $595,300 to the project for design and engineering. The Colorado Department of Transportation’s Aeronautical Board contributed a $1,000,000 grant for construction, Booth said, while the Office of Just Transition provided $229,000 for design and engineering. The airport itself has committed up to $1,000,000 to the project.

The scope of the project involves widening Taxiway B from 35 feet to 50 feet and strengthening it to accommodate aircraft up to Airplane Design Group III, which includes wingspans up to 118 feet, such as large business jets, said Booth. This upgrade will significantly enhance the airport’s capacity to handle larger private and executive aircraft.

The project is set to bid in April, with construction scheduled for summer 2025.

The Yampa Fire Protection District also received $85,000 for a Feasibility and Facility Study.