SALEM – What’s good for the Oregon Coast, the reasoning goes, also should be good for Central Oregon.

Three Deschutes County lawmakers have filed legislation that would commit $2.5 million – repaid by Oregon Lottery proceeds – to help finance the soon-to-begin terminal expansion project at the Redmond Airport.

Those dollars would combine with $7.5 million in state funds already allotted for the terminal through a program known as Connect Oregon, which uses lottery-backed bonds to finance non-highway transportation improvements.

Add the money up, and it would equal the $10 million awarded by the 2005 assembly for a terminal expansion of the Southwest Oregon Regional Airport, near Coos Bay on the southern Oregon Coast.

”The state should put money where it will help the most for economic development,” said Rep. Gene Whisnant, R-Sunriver, noting that Central Oregon’s air hub is much busier than Coos Bay. ”This is a better use of the money.”

The coastal airport has daily commercial flights to Portland. It also has seen a spike in private jet traffic from well-heeled tourists coming to tee off at the Bandon Dunes golf course just to the south.

The other sponsors of House Bill 2644 are Sen. Ben Westlund, D-Tumalo, and Rep. Chuck Burley, R-Bend.

Crews will break ground this spring on the $35 million Redmond project, which will expand the terminal space from 22,000 square feet to roughly 135,000 square feet in order to accommodate the steadily rising volume of air traffic in and out of Central Oregon.

The region now has direct flights to Seattle, San Francisco, Portland, Salt Lake City, Los Angeles, Eugene and – starting March 29 – to Las Vegas.

”We’re still a small airport but we’re certainly larger than we were,” said Airport Manager Carrie Novick.

”The economic development department was kind enough to recognize the value of the North Bend airport to the coast and gave them $10 million for a new terminal, and we thought there perhaps is an opportunity to acquire more for the Redmond terminal.”

The building will feature an environmentally friendly design and will expand from one level to two, with a new basement to house luggage scanning equipment and offices for the U.S. Transportation Security Administration.

For the bill to pass, the authors will need to convince their colleagues – many of whom are introducing pork-barrel bills of their own – to invest in Central Oregon. Making matters more complicated, budget-writers are expressing concerns about Oregon’s debt load.

Westlund said it won’t be a cakewalk, but he can make a strong case for the Redmond Airport because it is an integral part to sustaining Oregon’s fastest-growing region.

”This is exactly the kind of economic development that the lottery is supposed to be used for,” he said. ”The new terminal is going to be functional, efficient and on the cutting edge and won’t benefit just Central Oregon, but everybody in the state.”