It's the biggest development at the Lewiston-Nez Perce County Regional Airport since its construction, so the airport's managers want to make sure it is planned properly.

Work on 80 acres on the airport's south side is going to be ready for construction in the next 12 to 18 months, but members of the airport authority said Wednesday they need to arrive at some sort of plan so the area doesn't become a hodgepodge.

"We've got this space that's going to be able for development in the not-too-distant future, what is the best layout for it?" Lewiston-Nez Perce County Regional Airport Authority Vice Chairman Mike Martin asked.

Varied hangars of different sizes have been the result of development at much of the rest of the airport since it was built in the 1940s, and Martin said he'd like to have a more refined plan in place on the south side.

The $2.5 million project includes the stringing of water and sewer utilities and the building of a street off O'Connor Road between the former Lewiston Gun Club and Southport Avenue.

There are about a dozen people on a waiting list for a private hangar, and one tenant with an agricultural application that could grow, but airport authority board members said they want to ensure they're also planning for other uses of the site.

"I think we have to plan for 20 years," Chairman William V. McCann Jr. said.

A variety of different hangar sizes were drawn as placeholders for the area on a map by a city of Lewiston airport advisory board that met before the creation of the authority last year. There also was talk at one point of seeing if the Bureau of Land Management or U.S. Forest Service had interest in locating at a south-side development.

Commissioners said Wednesday they want a plan that maximizes aviation development but also allows room for places where non-flying businesses might go. Where potential fuel and maintenance operators would go also needs to be pointed out on a map.

"We've got folks out there that are trying to bring business to the airport," said airport authority Treasurer Pat Nuxoll, "We've got to have some concept about what we're going to offer them."

Economic development organization Valley Vision is marketing the project to potential commercial developments, though board members said they'd like to give those potential tenants an idea of what's available.

Airport authority members are contemplating hiring an outside airport consultant to help on a plan to steer them in the right direction. The authority has been talking with Chicago-based Ricondo and Associates, and members of the firm were at Wednesday's meeting. Airport authority members said they still need to refine their goals for the south side before seeking outside help.

"We want it to be better than what we have," McCann said.

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Gary may be contacted at bgary@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2262.