- April 29, 2024
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Work begins this week on an $8.75 million project funded entirely by grants to refurbish Runway 6-24 at the Flagler Executive Airport, and a grant-funded project to refurbish the Air Traffic Control Tower is in the near future. The boon isn’t just to the airport, but to all of Flagler County.
There are 28 business tenants and agencies located at the Airport with one of the largest being the Florida Army National Guard, which recently held the grand opening of its 82,043 square foot, $21.7 million Flagler Palm Coast Readiness Center that will allow 260 soldiers to drill together.
“As part of the construction, the Florida Army National Guard assisted financially with the South Entrance Road to the Flagler Executive Airport along, with associated stormwater retention improvements, which enhances the ability to attract other commercial development to the airport,” Commission Chair David Sullivan said. “The increased employees in the area will generate positive residual effects for retailers and restaurateurs serving the needs of the employees and guardsmen while at the Readiness Center.”
The Florida Department of Transportation in March of 2019 published its Statewide Aviation Economic Impact Study and concluded the statewide benefits are $175 billion and the Flagler Executive Airport contribution to that number is $150 million when factoring in on-airportimpacts, visitor spending, employment and payroll, as well as multiplier impacts.
Regular improvements to the Flagler Executive Airport keep the economic impact numbers strong.
“With the recent grants for the Rehabilitation of Runway 6-24 and the upgrade to the Air Traffic Control Tower equipment, we’ve brought in more than $50 million in grants since I started here in 2009,” Airport Director Roy Sieger said. “The Airport has been the recipient of several aviation safety awards from both the Federal Aviation Administration and the Florida Department of Transportation for improvements made to the Airport, which were primarily completed due to the increases the airport has seen in its number, size and types of aircraft operations.”
The current project includes rehabilitating the entire runway pavement – a length of 5,000 feet and a width of 100 feet – the addition of new Medium Intensity Runway Lights (MIRLs), Runway End Identifier Lights (REILs), and an aircraft run-up area. Additionally, a new airfield electrical vault will be constructed as well.
The Federal Aviation Administration grant is for $6.77 million, and the Florida Department of Transportation grant is for $1.98 million.
All flights will use Runway 11-29 during the 250 construction days Halifax Paving has to complete the project.
“Some of our residents will be happy about the temporary flight realignment, but others may not,” Sieger said. “There will be a few times during the project that the airport will have to be completely closed to tie-in the pavement where the runways intersect.”
Flagler Executive Airport was originally constructed in 1942 as an outlying military airfield for Naval Air Station Jacksonville. It operates as an enterprise fund, which means that everything from changing light bulbs to salaries to capital projects come from revenues from grants, or earned through ground and building leases and fuel sales. Property taxes are not utilized to support the airport.
