Piney Pinecreek Border Airport in limbo

An airport that includes parts of the RM of Piney and the State of Minnesota is in limbo after the RM sent a letter to end an operations agreement it had with the state.

Piney Pinecreek Border Airport runs from the end of Highway 89 to Pinecreek, Minnesota. It’s been around since the 1950s, but its runway was only extended into Canada in 1972. Since then, an operations agreement has been in place between the two governing bodies who jointly own the airport.

About 200 to 300 airplanes go through that airport annually, according to Reeve Wayne Anderson. He said the airport in times past was used to transport patients from Piney to Winnipeg. Roseau, Minnesota, is the nearest hospital to Piney taking only 20 minutes to travel there. Patients would be transported back to Canada by ambulance and then flown to Winnipeg to receive further treatment. Now, the airport is mostly used to clear customs ahead of Winnipeg.

Recently, Minnesota informed the RM that modern upgrades needed to be done to the runway at a cost of $2.5 million with the RM covering almost half. The RM couldn’t afford the upgrades and informed the state that it would end their operations agreement by Jan. 1, 2025.

“To have an agreement between a municipality and a state, normally that would be the Canadian government would sign an agreement with a state or even a province, but imagine some bigger players have to step up $1 million. The RM of Piney residents are only 1,800 people. So there’s no way we can afford that kind of money,” said Anderson.

The RM’s contribution to the airport came in the form of insurance for $4,800, of which $2,400 came from the province as an airport grant.

Currently, the two governments are in discussions as Minnesota continues to do studies. If Minnesota decides to do the upgrades itself, Anderson said the RM would re-enter the operations agreement it had with the state.

Should the RM return to an agreement, Anderson said they would be looking at a helicopter pad so that STARS can pick up patients at the border. He said STARS can’t fly into American airspace because of its night vision technology. The RM has not spoken to STARS as it’s waiting to see what happens in Minnesota.

The RM has reached out to the province, but Anderson said they weren’t too interested in discussing the topic. The RM also reached out to the Canadian government who told them to apply for grants. Should the RM and Minnesota not come to an agreement, the last day for the operation of the airfield is Dec. 31.

“We have to wait and see how his plays out,” said Anderson.