Juneau Airport Master Plan Update/Airport Layout Plan Update
PROJECT UPDATE
On June 2nd, the Juneau Master Plan Update (MPU) project team provided the Juneau Assembly Public Works Committee with an update presentation of the Juneau MPU project. The presentation included a description of the Master Planning process, discussed the schedule, and the work completed up through May 2025. Work to date included airport requirements, the aviation forecast, and detailed descriptions of the recommended alternatives for the 08/26 Runway, the Terminal area, the Northwest development area, and the Northeast Development area. The team explained the public process conducted to date, including two Technical Advisory Committee meetings and a public open house and Airport Board presentation given in April. Finally, remaining work was covered including Alternative Refinement, the Implementation Plan, and the final draft Technical Report, expected by the end of June. The Aerial Survey is also scheduled for June, weather permitting; this survey will provide the remaining data the team needs to complete the Airport Layout Plan and the Exhibit ‘A.’ These two documents must be approved by the FAA before the MPU completion which is expected at the end of 2025.
You can review the presentation file here.
Project Background
This project involves preparation of an update of the current Airport Master Plan (MPU) and Airport Layout Plan (ALP) for the Juneau International Airport (JNU) in accordance with the requirements of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and the needs of the City and Borough of Juneau (CBJ), the owner/FAA-obligated airport sponsor. The JNU Master Plan Update MPU will primarily focus on updating:
1) the aviation demand forecast based on updated data through 2023, and current growth.
2) the current ALP and plan for future runway, safety area, taxiway, approach corridors that should be protected for safety and expansion.
Project Purpose
The MPU and ALP Update will serve to guide CBJ’s strategy for the future development of JNU to satisfy demand in a timely, cost-effective, and feasible manner while minimizing airport development-related environmental and socioeconomic impacts.
The airport has played an important role in the past development of the community and will play an even greater role in the future. The airport is essential to many of the policies and implementing actions of the CBJ Comprehensive Plan. The airport serves as a hub for northern Southeast Alaska and the development of City of Juneau as a regional center for commerce and medical service emphasizes this aspect of the airport’s role. The FAA classifies JNU as a Primary Non-Hub airport, based upon passenger enplanements in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems. In 2018, the CBJ finalized and approved a Sustainability Master Plan for the long-term future development at JNU. The MPU proposed in this scope, is intended to address the development over the next 20 years with a primary focus on the short- and intermediate term facility development planning actions that will collectively serve to improve air transport access, air cargo and logistics activities, passenger terminal efficiency and security, air safety, and maximize airport facility development, provide related economic impact that will all serve to generate resources to support the financial health of JNU and the Region as a whole.
Project Schedule
It is the CBJ’s intent to have the final master plan update completed, if possible, by the winter 2025, depending on FAA approval. The 2014 forecast for aircraft operations at JNU has already been exceeded, and updating the FAA approved forecast of future operations and identification of the critical aircraft is imperative to confirm and quantify previously planned airport projects. An accurate updated forecast will impact the ultimate configuration of the airport layout plan, including potential runway 
extensions and impacts to protected airspace along runway approach paths.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q: Why is a master plan necessary?
A: An airport master plan is needed for two reasons. First, to establish a logical set of development parameters and timelines that will coincide with the airport’s needs over time. Second, the FAA requires an up-to-date plan to remain eligible for federal grants. Many capital improvement projects are eligible to receive up to 90% funding from the federal government.
Q: What are the components of the master plan?
A: 1. An inventory of existing conditions. 2. Activity forecasts to identify growth trends and changing conditions. 3. Demand-capacity analysis to assess improvement needs. 4. An overview of known environmental resources and land-use controls to identify potential on and off-airport related impacts. 5. A development plan to enhance safety and accommodate future growth and changing conditions. 6. An implementation (capital improvement) plan that identifies funding sources and project sequencing for the short term (1 to 5 years), intermediate term (5 to 10 years), and long term (10 to 20 years).
Q: The master planning process will result in the following two products:
A: 1. Airport Layout Plan (ALP) – A set of plans that graphically depicts the phased development of the airport. 2. Airport Master Plan Report – A written report which technically justifies, through sufficiently detailed narrative descriptions and graphic presentation, the Airport Layout Plan.
Q: How can the public get involved?
A: The simplest way is through this website. You can learn about upcoming public meetings, read materials from prior meetings and review project deliverables as they are developed. Sign up to receive meeting notices or send us a question or comment on our contact page. All public meetings will be widely announced well in advance.
Q: How does the approval process work?
A: Approval of the Juneau Airport Master Plan is obtained from the City and Borough of Juneau, which operates the airport, and the FAA, which ultimately approves the updated airport forecast and the Airport Layout Plan. The FAA’s approval of the plan represents acceptance of the general location of the future facilities depicted with respect to safety, efficiency, and utility of the airport. Additional approvals and steps are usually necessary before a project can move forward to the construction phase.
Q: What happens after the plan is approved?
A: FAA’s approval of the Airport Layout Plan is the first step in the development process. Often, an environmental review will follow for priority projects during a given timeframe (usually 5 years or less). After all necessary approvals are obtained, a project may then move forward to the construction phase.