Lewiston Regional Airport Industrial Park Brings Businesses and Jobs to Rural Idaho

To help diversify its economy and increase job opportunities, Lewiston, Idaho, developed a plan to make its regional airport more attractive to business.

Local leaders knew that the Lewiston-Nez Perce County Regional Airport, located in an ideal location in north central Idaho - just across the border from Washington – could be a terrific asset with incredible potential to boost the economy of the entire region. However, several commercial carriers and air cargo carriers who wanted to locate there couldn’t due to the facility lacking basic infrastructure.

In 2007, Lewiston officials decided to reach out to EDA to see what type of infrastructure funding they might qualify for.

After submitting a comprehensive economic development proposal to update the infrastructure at the airport and surrounding area, EDA invested $1.9 million in the city to make road, water and sewer improvements that led to the development of the 80-acre Lewiston-Nez Perce County Regional Airport industrial park.

Originally, the city estimated that 255 jobs would be created as a result of the project.

Today, however, after all infrastructure improvements were completed in 2012, a total of 686 jobs have been created and $5 million in private investment has been generated for the region.