August 2007--The St. Augustine-St. Johns County Airport Authority and Passero Associates recently received the Environmental Project of the Year Award from the Florida Airports Council (FAC). The award was given in recognition of excellence in environmentally responsible development for the New Taxiway and Hangars project at the St. Augustine-St. Johns County Airport. This is the first year that the FAC has presented an award for Airport Environmental Project of the Year.

Suzanne Green, Chairperson of the Airport Authority, received the award at the FAC Annual Conference in July in Orlando, Florida. After thanking the FAC and the Awards Committee, she thanked Passero Associates and stated that, “This project would not have happened without Passero Associates. Passero prepared 15 design alternatives for the project in order to save historic trees and avoid an environmentally sensitive area. Through this diligent effort, our goal of preserving the airport’s unique character became a reality.”

During the award ceremony, a professionally produced video was shown that demonstrated the creative thinking and exceptional design that characterized the project, noting that the project has now raised the bar for others to provide similar environmentally sensitive airport development projects. Wayne Wegman, President of Passero Associates, said, “Everyone’s efforts created a project that we can all be proud of, and which will serve as an example of what can be accomplished when professionals work with clients to achieve a common goal, to not only improve an airport, but to preserve an ecological treasure.”

Speaking of the project’s unique challenges, Andrew Holesko, Vice President of Passero Associates, said, “It is a rare opportunity for an airport to have the funds, time and interest to not only complete their project in the best possible manner, but to also protect and preserve the local environment.” In St. Augustine, Florida, Passero was presented with just this opportunity.

Passero’s client, the Airport Authority, worked closely with the firm to create a new Taxiway, Aircraft Parking Apron and aircraft storage hangars within an area of mature tree growth, adjacent to a saltwater marsh. The project area was filled with mature Oak, Maple, Elm, Sycamore and Palm trees, a diminishing treasure throughout the state of Florida. Passero was asked to facilitate the preservation and relocation of these trees, some ranging in size from 18-42 inches in diameter and weighing in excess of 35,000 pounds. Trees were relocated within the project area, as well as to the perimeter of the project, to line the taxiway and apron with “natural works of art,” as described by a member of the Airport Commission.

In order for this vision to become a reality, the engineers and planners at Passero worked closely with the Authority and Davey Tree Company, a national tree relocation expert. Davey, previously showcased on “Monster Machines” on the TLC television network, has some of the only machines capable of this work in the United States.

Bryan Cooper, Assistant Airport Director for the Airport Authority, said of the project, “We’re not doing it because we have to – we’re doing it because it’s the right thing to do.”