READINGTON -- Negotiations between the Solberg family and the township over the future of the Solberg-Hunterdon Airport have ended because of what township officials said was the Solberg family's unwillingness to revise plans for the airport's proposed expansion.

Mayor Gerard Shamey, at the beginning of Tuesday evening's public information session on the negotiations, said "Solberg Aviation remains committed to lengthening, widening and increasing" its two runways beyond what the township wanted.

According to the presentation , the Solbergs' final proposal for the airport would lengthen the main runway from 3,000 to 5,000 feet to accommodate small jets, as well as the construction of 500,000 square feet of hangar and office space on the 726-acre airport property.

The township's final proposal for the site called for a maximum increase of the main runway to 3,735 feet, with no jet traffic allowed, and up to 150,000 square feet of hangar space.

Both proposals call for roughly 650 acres of the property to be preserved as open space; however, the township is offering $22 million for the property while the Solberg family is asking $36 million for the parcel's development rights, Township Committee member Frank Gatti said.

The information session also featured presentations by township consultants who have been assessing the potential effects of the airport expansion.

Rich Golaszewski, of the transportation consulting firm GRA, Inc., said the negotiations between the Solbergs and the township came down to the airport's business needs versus the township's Master Plan.

Golaszewski said Solberg Aviation Co. would most likely need financial assistance to complete the proposed expansion and improvements -- money that if it were provided by the Federal Aviation Administration, would "set the process in motion" and place the project under federal guidelines and protection.