Officials Mark Progress on $5.2 Million Terminal at Laurinburg-Maxton Airport

Officials assembled Thursday at Laurinburg-Maxton Airport to commemorate a construction benchmark. They watched crews hoist the first overhead steel beam into place. The 8,200-square-foot terminal project has been underway since ground broke four months earlier, with a price tag of $5.2 million.

U.S. Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C., connected the airport's past with its promise. "This airport has a tremendous history when you think about the greatest generation that built gliders here and trained here and protected the freedoms that we're now enjoying in the 250th year of," said Budd, according to The Laurinburg Exchange.

State Rep. Garland Pierce, D-Scotland/Hoke, stressed teamwork. Scotland County pushes people to unite, he explained. "One thing about Scotland County, they will insist that we all work together for the community … Each day we look at this facility, it also serves as a reminder of what collaboration is all about, working together to make a difference, and I know that this world will be a better place the more we work together for the good of this country and our state," Pierce said.

The two-story structure will feature wide glass panels and a vaulted lobby ceiling. Entrances will open from the road and the airfield. An interior overlook offers sightlines to the runway, taxiway, and incoming planes.

More work looms. Within twelve months, the airport expects to build 18 new T-hangars and two corporate hangars. Perimeter fencing will go up. Plans are advancing to extend and widen the runway so bigger aircraft can land.