The only civilian airport on North Whidbey will be able to expand its runway, a milestone that owner Robert DeLaurentis believes opens the doors to faster emergency responses and more tourism to the island.

Just a few days before its first birthday as the DeLaurentis International Airport on July 20, the Island County Planning Department granted the privately owned facility a permit to expand the runway from 25 feet to 60 feet of width after recognizing it as privately owned but with public use.

The runway is currently only half the width of most airport runways, and it’s rated in poor condition by the state. A wider runway would prevent larger aircraft — like Life Flight Network’s single-engine turboprops — from going off the runway when landing, according to DeLaurentis.

For months, DeLaurentis spoke with the department and with county commissioners about the airport’s benefit to the public, as public projects receive priority in the permitting process.

The runway expansion will allow the airport to bring Life Flight’s fixed-wing planes that have a wingspan of about 50 feet and can replace helicopters in an emergency when there are icy conditions or other adverse weather conditions.

To him, making the airport available to the air ambulance service will allow patients to skip long ambulance and ferry rides to the mainland, potentially saving lives.

The runway expansion also opens the door for potentially bringing air charter companies with larger planes, such as Kenmore Air, which could operate regularly.

With larger planes flying to Whidbey, DeLaurentis believes Whidbey would see more tourists.

“A functioning airport is critical for the financial success of the island,” he said.

Soon, workers will remove a section of dirt on both sides of the runway, digging one foot deep and a total of 35 feet wide, then fill the hole with gravel and pour asphalt on top of both the original runway and the added gravel.

DeLaurentis estimates the new runway will be ready in a month or a month and a half. The parking lot and the taxiways, he added, should be done by next week.

“It took us about eight months to renovate 90% of the airport, but it took us seven months to get one permit,” he said.

DeLaurentis said he is planning to host car shows and music events at the airport starting in August.

The airport is located on North Monroe Landing Drive. It was originally the Wes Lupien Airport and then became the AJ Eisenberg Airport before it was purchased last year by DeLaurentis, a well-known pilot and entrepreneur.