A private investment group has submitted a proposal for a new aircraft hangar at Felts Field Airport, at 6311 E. Rutter, in the Chief Garry Park neighborhood of Spokane, says Tim Lewis, one of the investment group members.

Lewis, who also is the chief instructor at Northwest Flight Service, says the proposed hangar is needed to accommodate a growing demand for aircraft storage.

“Felts Field has a huge need for additional hangar space. It’s pretty full,” he says.

Lewis says Northwest Flight Service isn’t affiliated with the hangar project.

A pre-development conference application has been filed with the city of Spokane and proposes the construction of a T-style airplane hangar, with 11 to 13 units.

A T-style hangar allows for an efficient way to park airplanes, Lewis says. “They’re called nested T-hangars where you have a row of airplanes parked so that their tails are in, and their noses are out. It’s like a garage, a multiunit garage in the shape of a plane.”

The prefabricated hangar materials will be supplied by Fulfab Inc., a Canton, Ohio-based hangar manufacturer, according to permit information.

Site plans for the project show the structure will have between 15,300 square feet and 17,800 square feet of aircraft storage space.

No contractor has been selected yet, Lewis says.

Permits show the estimated cost of construction at about $1.5 million, although Lewis says it could be higher. He says the proposed facility will be secured, and the units can be customized with lighting and heating.

“The concept is that this will get built and then they’d get sold off individually,” Lewis explains.

The project ownership group is comprised of three local investors, including Lewis, who declines to disclose the other members’ identities.

Whether the project moves forward is contingent on feedback received from the city of Spokane, in addition to rising costs of construction materials and labor. He says at the rate costs have been increasing, the price of the units for potential buyers could become too expensive to make the project viable, and he’ll know more about the expected valuation after a meeting with the city, scheduled for today, June 2.