Aviation Planner joins TKDA
TKDA, an employee-owned provider of engineering, architecture, and planning services, announces that aviation planner Marcus Watson has joined the firm’s Airport Division as planning group manager.
Marcus has more than 10 years of experience as an aviation planning consultant and project manager serving airports in the upper Midwest. As a licensed FAA commercial pilot with an instrument rating, he offers a unique perspective to the aviation planning process.
“I am thrilled to join the TKDA Aviation team to complement the services we provide to our clients here in Minnesota and across the country,” said Marcus.
In addition to completing master planning studies for several general aviation and commercial service airports in the upper Midwest, Marcus has experience in program management, airport design, Airport Layout Plans (ALP), and airport project development. He has also assisted clients with securing state and federal grant funding.
Marcus recently completed an Airport Master Plan/ALP update for the city of Roseau, Minnesota. Working together with airport stakeholders, this plan developed a workable solution to a constrained apron/building not in compliance with new FAA standards. The study put the city on track to secure over $3 million in Federal and State funds for much-needed airport safety enhancements, capacity improvements and pavement rehabilitation.
Among his more recent aviation planning projects are an airport master plan/ALP update for the Sioux Falls Regional Airport in Sioux Falls, South Dakota; an airport master plan/ALP update for Grand Forks International Airport in Grand Forks, North Dakota; and an airport master plan update for the Eveleth-Virginia Municipal Airport in Eveleth, Minnesota.
Marcus also recently managed the airport development program for the city of Fairmont, Minnesota, with a focus on the city’s broader airport development vision. In that role, he provided technical project assistance and partnered in the revision of the airport’s capital improvement program, which secured more than $800,000 in federal and state airport improvement funding.
Marcus earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in aviation management from the University of North Dakota, Grand Forks.
“Marcus will bring comprehensive airport planning services to the TKDA aviation team to help our clients achieve their airport development goals,” said John Ahern, Vice President of the Aviation Division at TKDA. “He is a great fit for our growing team.”
TKDA has more than 107 years of experience, and is ranked among Engineering News-Record’s Top 500 Design Firms nationwide.
