NATCHEZ — The Natchez-Adams County Airport has received a $130,000 grant to rehabilitate taxiways to one runway at the airport and has applied for another $140,000 to renovate the terminal building.

Airport Manager Clint Pomeroy said the approximately $130,000 grant from the Federal Aviation Administration’s Airport Improvement Program will be used to spray a rejuvenating agent on the asphalt of two taxiways at the airport.

The agent will penetrate the top layer of the asphalt, Pomeroy said, and seal cracks in the runway and protect it from future wear and tear. Pomeroy said the agent will also extend the life of the asphalt another 10 years.

“It’s a lot cheaper and more economical than having to lay another layer of asphalt on the taxiways,” Pomeroy said.

The airport and the Mississippi Department of Transportation Aeronautics division will each pay a 5-percent cost match for the grant.

Jordan Kaiser & Sessions has prepared the plans and specifications for the project, Pomeroy said, and bids for construction will be opened on May 15.

Pomeroy said he is hoping to receive a $140,000 grant sometime in June from MDOT’s Multi-modal Transportation Improvement Fund to renovate and upgrade the airport terminal building.

The proposed renovations include modernizing bathrooms, light fixtures and possibly the heating and cooling system in an effort to make the building more energy efficient, Pomeroy said. Space in the building will also be closed off to create offices.

Repairs will also be made to the interior and exterior of the building.

“We won’t do anything to change the shape or appearance of the building, because the building reflects the antebellum-style, and we want to keep it that way,” Pomeroy said.

The grant for the renovations will only require a 1-percent cost match from the airport.

“I really hope we are able to get the grant, because I would really like to see the work done on the building,” Pomeroy said. “It really needs it.”