Burbank Airport Spending Request OKd

The Federal Aviation Administration approved a request by Burbank Airport to use $24.2 million in passenger fees toward buying land for a controversial new terminal, airport officials said Thursday.

The approval means the money can be used for the airport’s planned purchase of about 130 acres from Lockheed Martin Corp. The funds are provided through a $3 charge applied to each departing passenger’s ticket, and until now had been approved for collection only.

City officials oppose a larger terminal with more gates because of concerns over noise, traffic, pollution and other potential problems.

Officials with the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority say a new terminal is needed for safety reasons and to better handle increasing passenger demand. The airport serves about 5 million passengers a year.

The $24.2 million for the project is in addition to an $8.6-million FAA grant that Burbank officials sought to have revoked. The FAA last week rejected arguments by city officials, who contend that the authority’s grant application was misleading. But the FAA found that suspension of the grant was not justified.

“This moves the authority significantly closer to meeting its stated objective of acquiring the terminal site in order to make this a safer airport,” said Thomas E. Greer, the airport’s executive director.