This Pierce County airport to see $7.56M in upgrades, including a wider runway

A tiny Pierce County airport is getting a $7.56 million overhaul.

The Thun Field runway in South Hill is being widened and will close on July 27, with a tentative reopening set for November, the airport announced Thursday.

The runway has reached the end of its “service life,” airport manager Trent Smith told The News Tribune in an interview. Planes taking off and landing and weather impacts have caused the pavement to crack and the paint to wear, creating potential safety concerns, he said.

“Just like most items in life, they deteriorate with time, and so that’s where we’re at with the runway,” he said.

The 3,650-foot runway was last reconstructed in 1988. It is being widened from 60 to 75 feet, and its new surface should last an average of 20 additional years, Smith said. Though the size of the planes using the runway will stay the same, the wider design aligns with current federal aviation standards, according to airport spokesperson Anne Radford. “The additional width will support pilot safety, as it will increase space for operations,” Radford told The News Tribune over email. The 244-acre field is primarily used for recreational aviation and flight instruction, she said, but can also assist with responses to wildfires, medical evacuations and other emergencies. It saw approximately 111,000 takeoffs and landings in 2024, Radford said, though she noted that the number was only an estimate since the airport doesn’t have a control tower. In addition to the new runway, the project will include drainage improvements, new lighting and other repaving, according to the announcement. Funding comes from a federal grant, state transportation funds and Pierce County.

The Federal Aviation Administration will provide $7.18 million; the Washington Department of Transportation will pay $181,000, and Pierce County will pick up the remaining $196,000. The project includes an additional $736,000 in design costs.

The reconstruction will impact “a couple hundred” airport users, Smith said. Airport grounds, hangars and businesses will remain accessible during construction.

“This is critical in keeping the runway available to airport users for the years to come,” he said.