Kansas House Speaker Ray Merrick says Wichita will have to bear the cost if it decides to rename Mid-Continent Airport for President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

The Wichita Eagle  reports that estimates of the cost of the name change have ranged from less than $175,000 to as much as $700,000.

Speaking Friday during a luncheon at the Republican Wichita Pachyderm Club, Merrick said the state doesn’t have that kind of money lying around.

Wichita Airport Director Victor White says the Kansas Department of Transportation already has made it clear that it would have to be reimbursed for changing state highway signs. Federal rules don’t allow use of airport funds to pay for off-site signage. But White says the money could come from city coffers or private donations.
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Information from: The Wichita (Kan.) Eagle