Massport commits $32M to boost Worcester airport

WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) -- The Massachusetts Port Authority is spending $32 million in a multiyear effort to revitalize the Worcester Regional Airport.

The Telegram & Gazette reports that the goal is to equip Worcester with the best landing system available to make the airport more attractive to major airlines. Massport officials say it's also about spurring economic development.

Massport, which owns and operates the airport, has authorized the money needed to install the new landing system. But the project is at least five years from completion and the agency must win the support of the Federal Aviation Administration.

Massport and its consultants will make their case to local, state and federal officials and to the public over three years. Construction would take another two years.

The airport is near environmentally sensitive marshland and Worcester's water supply.