Denver-based developer Lloyd Goff has taken possession of the Fort Collins Municipal Airport and is clearing the acreage for development of a future energy research campus.

Although the official closing date of the airport is Dec. 31, the airport essentially closed last week.

The last flight to take off from the Fort Collins Municipal Airport departed Nov. 1, said Sharone Mekelburg, the former manager of the airport.

Longtime pilot Paul Neilsen was the last pilot to use the runway, she said. He guided his Fort Collins-made Luscombe back to a grass strip several miles north in the Wellington area. Other pilots are using the Fort Collins-Loveland Airport in Loveland.

The 45 hangars mostly are empty except for smaller items stored by pilots over the years. Former hangar occupants have until Dec. 31 to clear out completely.

"A lot of us have been involved since the airport opened in 1967," Mekelburg said. "It's been like a club here, with a real camaraderie among the pilots and users. Change is a part of life, and you move on."

Mekelburg, 66, managed a half-dozen employees and the private airport's operations since 1992. As she helps Goff close the airport, she also is launching out on her own. After working for a local real estate firm for years, she now is branching out with her own firm, Hilltop Realty.

Mekelburg said her favorite memories go back to several special summers in the mid-1990s.

"The three years we had the World War II B-17s and B-24s were wonderful times," Mekelburg said. "They gave rides to people. It was a miracle. Unbelievable."

In addition to those summers of 1995, 1996 and 1998, Mekelburg said, the summer of 1993 was captured in a special photo that became the airport's unofficial bragging-rights postcard. The photo shows about 185 planes at the airfield during the week that Rush Limbaugh came to speak.

"It was very busy here with all the pilots that flew in to hear Rush Limbaugh speak," Mekelburg said.

Last week a painter came in and put giant, white X marks at the ends of runways. The X marks tell pilots overhead that the airport no longer is open.

More than a couple dozen businesses surrounding the airport have catered to pilots and planes.

QG Aviation of America, Inc. will continue restoration work on airplanes, trucking work in and out, co-owner Jackie Middleton said.

Vintage Aircraft Ltd., 128 Racquette Drive, also will continue restoring aircraft, employee Stan Hime said.

Both Geo-Seis Helicopters Inc. and Century Helicopters Inc. at 2001 Airway Ave. will continue working with helicopters. Century owner Larry Hansen also will keep open the sister business, Paravion Technology Inc., an aircraft products manufacturer.

"We'll continue like we have for more than 20 years," said Mike Hansen, general manager and the son of Larry Hansen. "We continue to grow and grow. This creates more opportunities for us."

With the pending closure, the Hansens' no longer could rely on the airport's fuel sources. They now have -and sell - their own fuel.

CD Fasteners also remains in business at 512 N. Link Lane, selling nuts, bolts and screws to the general public. Owner Chuck Vessey, a long-time pilot, said he established his business 35 years ago out by the airport because he wanted to keep his two planes in a nearby hangar.

It's been a rocky road for the private airport, which unlike the Fort Collins-Loveland Airport did not receive federal or local government funding.

"You bet I'll miss the airport. I've invested a lot of money in it over the years," Vessey said.

Though potential litigation is in the works over the closure of the airport, Goff is proceeding with his plans for development of the site.

Goff's first plans are to renovate the terminal into an event center early next year. People interested in future development of the site, potentially into a mixed-use renewable energy research center, would meet there, Goff said.

Until any major redevelopment gets under way, Goff said he'll likely lease hangar spaces out as storage facilities for boats and other items.