Washington ( CNN ) -- At 106-feet tall , the new control tower at Frederick Municipal Airport in Maryland could be called monumental . On Friday the nation will learn whether it 's a monument to government dysfunction . Opened last May with a $ 5.3 million from one federal government program , the tower could be closed because of another . The stimulus package -- a 2009 law spearheaded by President Barack Obama to jump-start the economy -- was Santa Claus , giving Frederick the new tower . The forced spending cuts -- which went into effect March 1 -- are The Grinch threatening to shut the tower down . `` It 's so much irony , it 's almost ridiculous and laughable , '' said Mamie Ambrose , one of the controllers expected to lose her job . `` I mean , we 're all so disgusted with it . '' FAA says 173 air traffic control towers will close April 7 . Altogether , 238 towers are on the chopping block . On Friday , the FAA is focusing on 189 low- or moderate-volume towers staffed by contractors . In letters to the airports , the FAA said it expects to cut funding to the `` vast majority '' of the towers . But the sharpest sting may be felt at those towers that have just opened , often at great government expense and at personal sacrifice to people who moved to accept the controller posts . At least three towers , like Frederick , were built with federal stimulus money and still have that `` new car '' smell . At Albert Whitted Airport in St. Petersburg , Florida , a tower built to withstand 130 mph hurricane winds was dedicated in July . It was built with $ 1 million in stimulus money and $ 2.1 million in congressional earmarks . At Opa-locka Executive Airport , near Miami , the federal government spent almost $ 1.9 million in federal stimulus money on the new control tower . Both are likely to be axed . `` It makes no sense , '' said Craig Fuller , president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association , a national group headquartered at the Frederick airport . `` Tragically something is going to happen , and then were going to review this decision and , I 'm sure , roll back some of the cuts they are considering now , '' Fuller said . Survey : U.S. entry driving visitors away . The FAA says it is facing an untenable situation . By congressional mandate , it must cut nearly $ 600 million from its nearly $ 48 billion budget this fiscal year . Because the majority of its 47,000 employees are air traffic controllers , it is impossible to cut its budget without affecting controllers , the agency says . The FAA is furloughing employees , eliminating midnight shifts at some control towers and reducing maintenance on non-critical facilities . In an effort to affect the fewest travelers , the FAA said it is targeting lower-volume airports -- those that have fewer than 150,000 operations a year ( a takes off or landing is an operation ) and fewer than 10,000 commercial operations . The 238 towers fall under those thresholds , including 49 FAA-staffed towers and 189 contractor-staffed towers . The FAA cuts to be announced Friday focus solely on the contract towers . The FAA said it will consider keeping a tower open if the airport convinces the agency it is in the `` national interest '' to do so . The FAA received 1,000 letters from the airports appealing the action . It has declined requests to make those letters public . But in letters released by the airports , many have cited their use by the military and medical flights , and their roles as `` reliever airports '' for nearby airports as evidence of their national significance . Closing towers will not meaning closing airports . Aircraft can use services from other FAA facilities or can use a common radio frequency to announce their intentions to take off or land . The FAA says the closures will not impact safety . But contract controllers disagree . Airports can make case to keep towers open . If the FAA said building the tower would improve safety , controller Ambrose says , how can it argue that closing the tower wo n't hurt safety ? Controllers say closing the towers will eliminate one layer of safety -- the extra set of eyes in the tower -- while contributing to the workload at other FAA towers , which will themselves be affected by furloughs . The FAA said it will manage the system by reducing volume , not reducing safety . As a result , flights to major cities such as New York , Chicago and San Francisco could experience delays of up to 90 minutes during peak hours when the effects of furloughs are felt later this spring . `` Delays in those major airports will ripple across the country , '' the FAA says . The most immediate impact will be on non-commercial flights . The 189 contract towers handle approximately 20 % of all airport operations nationwide , but less than 2.5 % of commercial operations , the FAA says . Advocates for contract towers argue they are suffering a disproportionate amount of pain . `` The rest of the FAA 's budget is getting a 5 % haircut ; the contract towers are getting a 75 % cut , because the FAA is cutting 189 of the 251 contract towers , '' Spencer Dickerson of the U.S. Contract Tower Association told CNN . CNN Correspondent Rene Marsh contributed to this report .
The FAA will announce which of 189 air traffic control towers will be closed . The towers , some recently built , will be closed due to forced spending cuts . They will close the ` ` vast majority '' of them , according to airports say .