The County Commissioners authorized a $39.5 million bond sale yesterday that includes $4.5 million to construct corporate hangars at Carroll County Regional Airport.

The bonds for the hangars will not be tax-exempt because the county anticipates making a $13 million profit on them over the next 40 years. The other bonds, which will be used to pay for items such as school and road construction, are tax-exempt.

Grading for the 70,000 square feet of new hangar space has begun and the county hopes to open the facility by spring, said J. Michael Evans, county director of public works.

Carroll is building the hangars -- seven contiguous structures of 10,000 square feet each -- in conjunction with Hangar Corporation of America.

"They tell us they expect to have the hangars fully rented before they are built," Evans said.

The airport has 88 hangars, but they are not large enough to house turbojets and other private jet planes the county hopes to attract, Evans said.

Corporate pilots pick the facility where their planes are housed, Evans said.

By federal law, money the county earns from the lease of the new hangars will be put back into the airport, Evans said. The money will be used to reduce existing debt and make improvements, he said.

Pub Date: 10/15/98