Bar Nunn is built on pavement. The town grew around the runways of Wardwell Field, Casper's original airport, and the old runways now form its street pattern. For a builder, that means the first drawing on a Bar Nunn lot is not the building. It is a map of what is already under the lot.
We build shops, equipment yards, light-industrial buildings and aviation-adjacent space on sites like these, and we plan the demolition, the reuse of old base and the new foundation as one sequence. When a parcel holds old runway or apron, we test the pavement and the subgrade before we decide whether to break it, recycle it or build over it.
The town sits at 5,285 feet in the Casper metropolitan area, along US Highway 20-26, close to the airport business park and the north end of Casper.
What may be under your lot
Old airfield pavement can be an asset or a cost. A thick, sound concrete or asphalt section can serve as a base for a new yard if the testing supports it. A cracked, voided section has to come out. We core, probe and survey first, and we price both paths so you can see what each one costs before demolition starts.
Buried items turn up on former airfields: abandoned fuel lines, drains, conduit, lighting cable and footings. We call for utility locates, then run ground-penetrating radar or potholes where the records are thin. Anything found is logged, tagged and reported before it is removed. If it is a fuel line or a tank, we stop and call your environmental consultant.
Drainage is the other thing an old paved field changes. Large paved areas shed water fast, and when we break them up the infiltration changes too. We look at where water leaves the lot today and design the new grading so we do not send it onto a neighbor. A small detention area, a swale or a culvert is often cheaper than a dispute.
A growing town next to the city
Bar Nunn grew about 35 percent, from 2,213 residents in 2010 to 2,981 in the 2020 census. The town's own history records that the Army Air Corps bought land along US Highway 20-26 in 1952 and moved the county airport to Casper, after which the old field was subdivided and the area became a town. For us the point is simple: roads, lots and utilities were laid out on an airfield grid, not a conventional one.
Growth brings demand for service shops, storage buildings and contractor yards in the metro. We build those on lots that may be narrow, may have long runs from the nearest utility, and may carry old pavement, and we say so in the first estimate. Bulk freight for those operators can move through the Casper logistics hub, which is part of the same airport-side industrial area.
Demolition, base and new foundations
Our scope for a Bar Nunn lot starts with site clearing and mass grading. We strip, break and haul or crush old pavement, rework the subgrade and compact in lifts with testing. Crushed concrete can be reused as base when the specification allows, which saves hauling and fill.
From there we build the shop or the yard. That could be a demolition and slab replacement job where a damaged floor comes out and a new one goes in, or a new pre-engineered building on a reinforced slab with frost-depth footings. Either way the work is sequenced so the site is never left open to wind and water longer than it needs to be.
Utilities get the same treatment. A lot laid out on an old airfield grid may be a long way from the nearest water main or power pole, and the cost of the extension can outweigh the cost of the building. We price the extension as its own line, with trench depth set below the frost line, so you can compare lots on a real basis before you buy one.
Working across the north side of the metro
Bar Nunn is inside the Casper metropolitan area, so our project teams work from the city and do not need a camp. That matters for a short job: a day of grading and a day of compaction testing should not carry lodging cost. It also means we can return for a punch list the next morning instead of the next week.
We also serve the airport business park and the surrounding industrial lots. If your company operates across Bar Nunn and the airport, we can set the yard, the shop and the hangar-side apron under one schedule, with one safety plan, and keep a single point of contact.
Safety near an active airport
Bar Nunn lies close to a busy airfield. Tall equipment, cranes and boom lifts near the flight path need coordination with the airport and, for tall structures, notice to the FAA. We ask early whether your parcel falls under any height restriction. We also control dust and debris, because loose gravel and plastic on a windy day are a hazard to a taxiing aircraft.
On the ground we hold the same standard we hold in a plant. Safety orientation on day one, a daily huddle, a named competent person for excavations, barricaded trenches and spotters for equipment. Old pavement breakers throw fragments, so we set exclusion zones and keep neighbors clear. Haul routes through town are planned so loaded trucks stay off residential streets, and we sweep the road at the end of every shift.
Got an old-airfield lot in Bar Nunn?
Send the address and what you plan to build. We will check what we can find about the pavement, tell you what to test, and give you a phased price. For adjacent work see our Mills projects or the advanced manufacturing shops we build.
Common Questions
Can you build on a lot that has old runway pavement under it?
Often yes, but we test first. Cores and probes tell us the thickness, strength and condition of the old section. Sound pavement can serve as base for a new yard or slab, and failed sections come out. We price both and let you choose.
Do I need to worry about height limits near the airport?
You may. Tall buildings, cranes and towers near an airport can trigger review. We ask for your building height and crane plan early, and we help you file the notice if one is needed. It is cheaper to learn that on day one than after steel is ordered.
What does a typical shop building cost to demolish and replace a slab?
It depends on the slab thickness, reinforcing, the amount of contaminated soil under it and haul distance for debris. We give a range after we core the slab and walk the lot, then a fixed price once the scope is known.
Is Bar Nunn a good place for a contractor yard?
Many operators think so. It is close to the airport, the metro and US 20-26, and lots can be assembled. The main variables are zoning, old pavement and utilities. We help you check each before you buy.
How do you protect the work from wind?
Open airfield ground catches wind. We schedule concrete finishing for calm windows, use windbreaks and curing compound, and brace metal building frames until sheeting is on. No frame sits without bracing overnight.