The Colorado Air and Space Port received a $500,000 grant from the Colorado Department of Transportation, and another $55,555 in an Adams County grant match, to rehabilitate the pavement on taxiways and parking ramps.

The money will be used for “pavement maintenance, including crack sealant, a seal coat application, and new pavement markings. The maintenance will extend the existing pavement life and reduce concerns about foreign object debris on the pavement,” according to an Adams County news release.

“By investing in infrastructure at Colorado Air and Space Port, we are paving the way to economic growth in the I-70 corridor,” said Emma Pinter, chair of the Adams County Board of County Commissioners, in the release.

Built in 1985 about four-and-a-half miles northeast of Watkins and seven miles southeast of Denver International Airport the space port is owned by Adams County.

Originally called Front Range Airport, it was designated by the FAA as a commercial spaceport — Colorado’s first — in 2018.

In 2023 the FAA reported a total of 117 launches from all 14 FAA licensed public U.S. spaceports. SpaceX, Elon Musk’s space flight enterprise, was by far the most common operator, but uses its own private facilities.

Space operations at Colorado’s space port are licensed for horizontal take-off, not vertical launches as are seen at Cape Canaveral, Fla.

Spacecraft will take off using standard propulsion systems and then fire rocket boosters to hurl the vehicle into space.

A general aviation airport, it supports both private aircraft and commercial cargo operations. At 191 feet tall, it boasted the tallest general aviation control tower in North America in 2005.

The property also hosts a Colorado National Guard armory, the Colorado Department of Transportation Aeronautical Division, and a Colorado State Patrol office.

The project is scheduled for spring/summer 2024.

For more information on aviation, aerospace, and economic opportunities at CASP, visit coloradoairandspaceport.com.