Study: Expansion of Tweed New Haven Airport will have $444M economic impact by 2027
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A rendering of the proposed changes at Tweed New Haven Airport
A new study commissioned by the Tweed-New Haven Regional Airport Authority projects that the planned expansion of the airport will generate some 2,400 jobs by the end of the decade.
The report, prepared by UConn’s Center for Economic Analysis, also forecasts $100 million in construction impacts by 2030, and $444 million in total economic impact to the state by 2027.
The study considers two potential scenarios. The first assumes continued operation by Avelo and Breeze, the airlines currently flying out of Tweed. The second assumes additional economic activity including an expansion of medical tourism at nearby Yale New Haven Hospital, and the development of an airport hotel.
The expansion, first announced in 2021, includes lengthening the runway from 5,600 to 6,575 feet, constructing a new terminal building and increasing parking capacity.
The release of the economic impact study comes as there continues to be significant opposition to the expansion plan from both environmental campaigners and local residents.
Yale Daily News reports that neighbors in the residential neighborhood that surrounds the airport are concerned about both increased traffic and environmental impact, particularly the extension of the runway and construction of new facilities on wetlands close to Long Island Sound.
In November, Save the Sound appealed the Federal Aviation Administration’s finding that the expansion would have “no significant impact” on the environment.
Last month the airport submitted an environmental permit application to the state, the latest step toward completion of the plan.
The project’s backers say the expansion will play a critical role in the region’s economic future.
“We’re looking at the creation of good jobs, renewed investments in our neighborhoods, and long-term, sustainable growth across the region,” said Robert Reed, chairman of the Tweed-New Haven Airport Authority. “These studies make clear that Tweed will help drive the next wave of development in Southern Connecticut.”
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