Anchorage Daily News

Airport officials announced late today that they have shelved indefinitely plans to build a new runway following a turbulent public meeting Wednesday night full of objections to proposals that would affect the popular Coastal Trail.

"We want to harmonize with everybody and see what it is they really want," airport director Mort Plumb said. "We're just going to postpone it and put it on the back burner."

Plumb said he didn't know when the runway question might be resurrected. Much depends on how the current uncertainty and instability of the financially pinched airline industry plays out in the coming months, he said.

Every day seems to bring news of cutbanks, mergers and increasing passenger fees.

The airport took a beating at Wednesday's public meeting as a crowd of 200 packed into the Coast International Inn to question and criticize proposals to build the new runway.

The airport master plan recommends a new runway to ward off delays or even gridlock anticipated by projected increases in air traffic passing through Anchorage, but critics questioned the accuracy of those forecasts and worried about the environmental effects of another runway.

Many came to the meeting wearing "I (heart) the Coastal Trail" stickers, because all four designs for a new runway would re-route the popular 11-mile trail, including two that would change it drastically.

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