Eight years after it was conceived–and at almost three times its original cost–the future 15,000 square foot general aviation building at Flagler County Executive Airport finally got its ground ceremonially broken this morning before dozens of local officials and spectators. One conspicuous absence: Palm Coast officials, though they’d been invited.
“You can bring a horse to water…” said Roy Sieger, the airport director, who had no other explanation for Palm Coast’s absence.
The $11.2 million building is financed by a $5.6 million grant from the state Department of Transportation, a $5 million appropriation from the legislature, and $620,000 in local airport funds.
Former Speaker of the House Paul Renner, who represented Flagler County during his legislative tenure, acknowledged applause for his role in securing the legislative appropriation, without which the project might have been delayed further.
“You know, infrastructure is so important to our communities, and we’re never going to have a seaport, but we have an airport,” Renner said. “We should make it the best it can possibly be, because it will improve the economic development of our area, make Flagler a more attractive place for tourism and just everything that you can imagine.”
Enterprise Rent-A Car has a lot at the airport, and the county’s tourism office rents space in one of the airport buildings. Beyond that, the airport’s connection to tourism is limited to high-end visitors who like to fly in and out. There is no commercial aviation there. The new building is not expected to substantially change operations. It will not add commercial service, for example–or reduce flight-school activities, which have drawn criticism from a limited but persistent group of residents near the airport.
The building will replace an existing, four-decade-old metal structure, expand administrative office space and include a flight planning room, public and meeting space, and some leasable space for airport-related operations. The county has commonly referred to the building as a “terminal.” That’s a misnomer, since the airport does not have commercial passenger service. It would more accurately be termed an airside operations building.
The airport’s access road from State Road 100, currently a rickety U-shaped thing more reminiscent of the grounds as a World War II airfield than an “executive” airport, will be redesigned with a roundabout.
“It’s part of the continual improvements of the airport,” Dance said. “It’s focused on the fixed base operations of the airport, the future hangar, all related to improving the airport, the operations, and I think a more sophisticated clientele. As the county grows, we get a lot more inquiries about the airport.”
An example, Dance said, referring to the new condominium towers rising along the shore, “is the Ritz that’s being built in Hammock Dunes, as I understand it. People that are looking at purchasing into the Ritz have inquired about the airport.”
Sieger, on whose watch the airport has been continually transformed, described today’s occasion as “momentous” and a “capstone project.” The airport has been undergoing reconstruction since 2009. Some 56 projects included a new control tower, the reconstruction of every runway (one of them for $17 million), installation of new runway lights, building five new T hangars with 62 units, new aircraft aprons, and now the new operations building, all totaling $65 million.
“With the completion of this project, we will truly be an executive Airport. This facility will be a grand gateway into our community,” Sieger said. He doesn’t like it when the airport is referred to as Flagler County Airport, as residents used to the airfield’s former, and more hometown, name, still do. He prefers the more ostentatious Flagler Executive Airport, even though it, too, is a misnomer.
County commissioners, constitutional officers, a school board member (Derek Barrs, who’s about to assume a post in the president’s administration) and Bunnell’s city manager were all present for the groundbreaking. That made the absence of even a single Palm Coast official stand out.
The county did not take kindly to Palm Coast Mayor Mike Norris’s suggestion a few weeks ago that the airport should be Palm Coast’s, anymore than the county had in 2010, when then Palm Coast City Manager Jim Landon made noise about annexing the 1,500-acre county property. Norris was even more explicit than Landon had been, speaking of the county airport as Donald Trump has spoken of Greenland.
“I want our city to have the airport,” Norris said at an April 1 City Council meeting, sharply criticizing Sieger. “Me, I think, I think we should need to pressure the county into turning over the airport to us. That’s me personally. And I don’t know what kind of legal, you know, hurdles we’d have to go through to get to that, but we are losing a lot of economic opportunity by the county controlling that airport, and I think it’s poor administration. There’s stuff coming out there, and really, it should be under our city control. It’s not an enclave. It’s an island that is in our city. It should be our city airport.”
Norris was not at the groundbreaking today, though he’s been missing several of his own city’s events and meetings. (Flagler Beach officials were not there, either, but they were in a day-long goal-setting session.) Norris’s contention that the city is losing a lot of economic opportunities is inaccurate. The airport has been an economic development success story for the county. Sieger is imperious and has rubbed a few people the wrong way, though in comparison with Norris’s short tenure at City Hall, Sieger would win a Mr. Congeniality Award, and the successes at the airport are largely attributable to him and his command of airport management.
The county-owned airport is run as a so-called enterprise operation, meaning that it is self-sustaining. It generates money through fuel sales, hangar and office-space leasing, so no general fund (or property tax) dollars are involved.
The new building is expected to be operational at the end of 2026.
Zack says
They are too busy with the developers, trying to drain the wetlands and destroy our woodlands and wildlife!
B Slapper says
If you think the building of a multi million dollar terminal at the Flagler COUNTY airport
will only affect those homeowners who live near the airport THINK AGAIN! The negative
effects of the terminal will echo and reverberate throughout ALL of Palm Coast. The traffic
on SR 100 which is already intolerable will get even worst. In addition all the major roadways
throughout PC will become further congested as the increased traffic spills over from SR 100
to all major arteries. All this is due to the grubby greed of Roy Sieger and his pals Andy Dance,
Heidi Petito , Greg Hansen and former FCBOCC ‘s who want this expansion to entertain “executives”
from China and Middle Eastern countries who mostly hold shares in all these flight school mills.
Also expect more of these schools to join the growing armada of flight school mill invaders.
It’s laughable that in your comparison of Mayor Norris and Roy Sieger you put Sieger on a pedestal
and put down Mayor Norris who is for the people and puts his constituents first. Obviously you caved
into the powerful and money class in the county and folded like a cheap camera. Guess you are intimidated
by those who can shut you down. You’re no Benjamin Franklin.
P.S. You need to revisit your former articles regarding the numerous complaints against Sieger by
not only residents but his own tenants and former airport employees like Darryl Hickman and Les Asbend
who won a county court case against him as Sieger tried to shut down his first amendment rights and evict him
as a airport tenant due to their exposure of his mismanagement of our airport.
celia pugliese says
I could have not wrote it any more realistic and eloquent. Thank you B Slapper.
We have nothing against the aiport just resolve the hazardous, dangerous training allover Palm Coast speacially in adjacent commu ities to the airport that has become a training firld enclave in our city. Meanwhile some supporting it are cowardly hiding under aliases while trying to intimidate us in our goal to have this issue resolved.
RobdaSlob says
Good grief B Slapper – your message really gets lost in your inability to communicate.
“… from China and Middle Eastern countries who mostly hold shares in all these flight school mills.…”. As written that statement appears to mean that being of Chinese or Middle Eastern descent is some how lesser than anyone else and shouldn’t be allowed in this country. Kind of curious what you think of the Irish, German, African, and other residents of this country?
Rage bait is not the answer to getting your way, in this case it just makes you look like a bigot.
celia pugliese says
I could have not wrote it any more realistic and eloquent. Thank you B Slapper.
We have nothing against the aiport just resolve the hazardous, dangerous training allover Palm Coast speacially in adjacent commu ities to the airport that has become a training firld enclave in our city. Meanwhile some supporting it are cowardly hiding under aliases while trying to intimidate us in our goal to have this issue resolved.
Is non acceptable that our FB, FC pier has been closed for such a long time to be rebuild new of concrete and twas he number one attraction and only one in the county used by multitude of families and is not repaired. But the FCBOCC instead ask and pompouse celebrate for 11.5 millions of taxpayers funds for an airport expansion that the residents multitude have not use for !
celia pugliese says
RobdaS No one is racist…is just the fact that all these “worldwide” trainees come to practice here as is just cheaper for them as when in Urope they have to pay to the airport for every touch, go and stop here is free to them and a hazard and nuisance to us. Nothing bigot about telling it like it is…How is B Slapper to describe the trainees for all those countries? Do not twist the message. Just lets tell it like it is: Touch and Go Fees:
“Many airports, particularly those used for flight training, charge for each touch and go maneuver, often a flat fee per circuit or landing. For example, Fly EPT Spain charges €6.50 for multiple “touch and go” circuits.
Other Airport Fees:
Besides touch and go fees, airports also charge for actual landings, takeoffs, and other operational activities, such as stopping on the runway.” Flyer.co.uk reports that at Cambridge Airport, the landing fee is £22.27 and the touch & go is £11.13.
Why free over Palmcoasters and Bunnell residents, are we supposed to be children of lesser God?
Jane Gentile-Youd says
Don’t forget to add Mori Hosseini , one of the owners of Embry Riddle, whose planes are terrifying the residents at all hours, getting everything he wants – always, He has made a mess of the original pristine design of Plantation Bay. Thank goodness we bought in the ‘old’ estste section with wide concrete roads (before Mori bought all unbuilt land in Plantation Bay in the early 90’s, not cracking all the time asphalt) street lights on both wides of the road – not just one which he builds to save money in not wiring both sides of the cracking roads he builds along his cracker box lots so small firefighters have a hard time getting through.. Driveways barely 20” long – our old old home ( 1987) has a 100 foot driveway.
It is sad and sickening the total lack of respect for the citizens most of our officials have and games and coverups for the big boys profits and who knows what else… just my personal opinion.
Gina says
Robdaslobaslob Says: It’s the truth, has nothing to do with descent so don’t play the
RACE CARD and stop with the name calling, if anything this airport with its over abundance
of flight schools are training over MARGINALIZED communities and don’t care about us,
go train over the gated communities!
Peaches McGee says
“The negative effects of the terminal will echo and reverberate throughout ALL of Palm Coast”
Hmm, ‘all of Palm Coast’? The way I see it, as a regular citizen, the airport benefits ‘all of palm coast’. The airport has new businesses and is actively courting others. The armory is another benefit. Since settling here in 2007, we’ve seen that ‘little airport’ transcend into something befitting of a growing community. Think of how many jobs, and how much revenue, ‘all of palm coast’ would lose if the airport would cease operations.
Why do so many people complain about airport noise? The majority of Palm Coast is affected by airport noise and we don’t complain. However, the buyers who didn’t perform their due diligence are pissed about the noise.
Need a guaranteed solution to your noise complaints? Move. I-95 is open 24/7 for your motoring convenience.
Gina says
[Bslapper is Gina. Please use one handle and stick to it. Don’t violate our rules. Thanks.—FL]
Go fly and practice their touch and goes over Mori Hosseini’s compound
and see how he likes it with his greedy cracker box lots.
Gina says
https://generalaviationnews.com/2011/01/16/embry-riddle-helps-chinese-grow-aviation/
Embry-Riddle helps Chinese grow aviation — General Aviation News
We have to give up our property rights for this, READ IT!
RobdaSlob says
Celia stop it. I find what Bslapper wrote as offensive, the race card was played by him – all I did point out what was written in plain language could clearly be read to mean that people of Chinese or Arab descent owning flight schools are somehow lesser than the rest of us.
Diluting the message with offensive statements in order to garner attention to your cause does you no good. Airplane noise has nothing to do with the ethnic background of who owns the flight school. You two have pulled this in the past and you’re doing it now.
Clearly you two have an issue with airplane noise. I appreciate that concern, I am vested in this community and want to see us all happier for being here. However, as one well versed in laws and regulations governing airplane noise and airports I find your comments and tact ineffective albeit a bit entertaining. It wouldn’t hurt you to park the ethnic issue aside. Or accept that there will be little airplanes buzzing around your Palm Coast home for the remainder of your years.
Sherry says
@ Celia, OK. . . we all make typos. . . but, you need to thoroughly edit your writing before posting. Your credibility is taking a big hit. Sorry!
Gina says
Robdaslob:” Or accept that there will be little airplanes buzzing around your Palm Coast home for the remainder of your years.”
Such a hateful ageist statement to Celia Pugliese, you should practice what you preach, and what is your
real name alias ROBDASLOB since Pierre is calling it out since he really didn’t like my initial comment and that’s what
really bugged him. I don’t like and do not agree with you Pierre as to what you wrote in this article, your words are not final and you and your sidekicks don’t define people. With that being said , Celia has been living down here for a long time
and has witnessed it all, it’s ashame that such disrespect for a senior who is an advocate for so many in PC has to be
chastised by a gang of supposely know it alls.
celia pugliese says
TY Sherry for noticing my “Europe” missdigit, thou your critic could have been more constructive than so destructive…just because you do not agree with my/our cause. If you read my post means that my credibility or words still count , means I still strike a chord with our community readership, including you! Regarding taking big hits, I have developed thick skin and can handle it to the point that I do not need to hide behind an alias like you, to just cowardly punch from the shadows while cheering for special interest! What do you have to hide “Sherry” who really are you and all those like you here that post with the same style?
celia pugliese says
RobdaS: Fist of all you ask me to stop, why? Because I am asking why the nuisance hazardous trainees touch and go and stops are free in FINK why in “Europe” are NOT free, as is one of the reason why they come from the whole world to train over us? You post that you are vested in this community! Well using your “alias” maybe leads us to think you are vested in FINK schools business were all like you profit from our residents missery in the ground? Who are you really to ask me to stop while hidding in your alias? At least to generate credibility I do not hide and post from public records.
celia pugliese says
Thank You Gina! Some seem to forget that there are Laws in Florida when some words/posts are crossing the line: In Florida, elderly law addresses stalking and intimidation through a combination of general stalking laws and provisions specifically addressing elder abuse. Florida Statute 784.048 covers stalking, while Florida Statute 877.002 addresses elder abuse, including intimidation and coercion. Orders of protection can be sought to prevent further harm from a perpetrator, including those who have engaged in stalking or intimidation.
The Voice Of Reason says
Make sure and name it Embry Riddle/Phoenix East Flight School Airport. If you don’t like that, name it Flagler County touch and go airport. These 2 flight schools generate 95% of usage. These training planes, Cessna c-172s, (propeller driven) use LEADED GASOLINE. While taking off full throttle they are essentially crop dusting the surrounding neighborhoods with lead particles. There’s a reason leaded fuel for your cars was phased out for good in 1996. It’s because its harmful to mental health. It has been proven to reduce IQ points especially in young children. Lead is not safe at any level. Planes can and are being built to use unleaded gas. The flight school industry is too greedy to phase out leaded fuel. Feel free to research leaded fuel if you don’t believe it. Lastly, the vast majority of jobs and money from our airport STAYS in Daytona Beach. They’re based there, get fuel there, park the vast majority of their fleet there. They use Flagler as a toxic dump.
Irwin M. Fletcher says
It makes sense that no body from Palm Coast was there. This project is just another waste of grant money used to entice flight schools to the area, with no clear economic benefit to the citizens of Palm Coast. Just another waste of federal funds at a two bit local airport with over represented activity based on student traffic.
Peter Wass says
NIMBY’S : Airports are essential, not unlike roads for Automobiles. most people who drive do not thinks they are doing anything dangerous and do not think twice about the noise their autos make. Driving Automobiles is by far more dangerous then the Airplanes flying above us and the traffic on any road in Palm Coast is more noisy then the airplanes. Not in My Back Yard, eh?
I hate traffic noise and the numbers of deaths from Automobile Accidents but driving automobiles has become and essential, as air travel has been for nearly as long as automobiles have traveled our roads. Suck it up and find another cause.
celia pugliese says
Great justified absence form our Palm Coast city officials as this FINK airport schools are a nuisance to Palmcoasters in a small regional airport that is an enclave in the middle of our city a free for all trainning field and posses a danger and hazard in our lives and restrictions to its benefit, to land and homeowners around it! Sure city sees the writting in the wall while with incremented by hundreds of students practicing touch and goes and stalls over Palm Coast is not IF but When a deadly tragedy will take place. and in this way city will kinda CYA and try to dodge the bullet!
celia pugliese says
Caution: the commenter below is making misleading claims about a public survey last year on noise at the airport. As we reported at the time: “The county from June 3 to Oct 2 activated web portal enabling users to submit complaints. It drew 3,095 submissions from 12 users, or residents, three of whom submitted 98 percent of entries. That left just 73 submissions, Salinas said. Of those, one user submitted 46 entries. The county classified 81.5 percent of the entries as “unfounded,” while 574 were classified as requiring additional investigation.” Commenters, do not use this site to spread disinformation. Thanks.–FL
And please Flaglerlive, stick to the facts about your claim regarding a LIMITED number of residents complaints, where
did you get that fact from? There were over 500 complaints in the portal that were under
investigation, WHAT HAPPENENED with them , that’s your opinion not the facts and you
should state it as such ,did you go around to our communtiy and knock on doors? Your
opinion undermines hundreds of households in our communities, people who worked hard
to finally have their voices heard, people who lost thousands on their homes sold because of the
relentlentless touch and goes that they could not bear any longer. You put the ineffective
uncaring airport director above a person who cares for our community and wants to help and who
is fighting for the struggling residents. None of the city council people showed because they care about
their residents and want to help resolve some of the issues. You can learn a thing or 2 from the
writer of the Observer who did the same article in an unbiased report where he even stated that
Andy Dance is attempting to help with some of the issues of the residents complaints and did
not make a CHEAP ATTACK on our Mayor because you don’t like him. If you are going to report this issue treat us fair please! Go visit the homes of the affected residents in Quail Hollow and Seminole Woods and see for yourself. Maybe the FCBOCC should learn something from this: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/naples-airport-to-start-testing-new-flight-procedures-early-on-friday-may-2/ar-AA1E0T4Q?ocid=BingNewsSerp&fbclid=IwY2xjawKDAMdleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFtZ1hFQ0RGWjQ5eWUybGJsAR7vuoUU-lFDHtnmNV_P49BjKbExptgIoJlDHq50xXNljOLd6y-p6WTbZv2wUg_aem_ROnc3Gksf_4pjJttb11Tbg
Gina says
FlaglerLive, in all fairness what Celia is stating is that there are 575 complaints that were classified
as under investigation, so WHAT HAPPENED TO THE INVESTIGATION???? We have been
asking this at meetings and in emails and get NO ANSWERS! Also I saw the same kind of web
portal report of a different airport with almost the same figures which is strange in itself. Sieger’s
own airport advisory committee member, a pilot and instructor, reported in a article you had featured that he
did not answer residents complaints, called him out as a lier at a FCBOCC meeting, and also
reported that he threw residents complaints in the garbage. This is one of the many issues we have
with Sieger, at a city meeting Pontieri had asked him to get back to her as to how many training flights
go out during the evening hours, he did not have an answer for her, we would like to know if he got back
to Ms. Pontieri, he never answers the golden question when asked by Andy Dance. Leann Pennington,
Theresa Pontieri of how many of the operations that come out of our airport are flight training operations,
why doesn’t he answer as an airport director he should be in the loop of this information.
FlaglerLive says
That’s a fair point and we will inquire. It is important to distinguish between “investigations” and the number of people who complained. Celia was contesting the characterization of those who complained as “limited,” and attempted to counter it by claiming there were 500 people complaining. There were not. We still stand by that characterization: limited.
Gina says
FlaglerLive: By not getting back to the public concerning the 575 complaints that still needed
to be investigated makes it appear to the public that the whole report is bogus
and that the public’s interest is not important nor considered especially since
this has been going on since last summer. Also since Sieger is not held accountable
and nailed down to answer by the county commissioners allow him to get away
with those questions they have presented to him. I have asked these questions to them in past
emails and get no replies. No answer is an answer. Also who investigated these complaints?
It should be conducted by a nonpartisan group who has no special interest in the airport
and the flight schools. The city council people claim that that are getting alot of complaints.
celia pugliese says
In any trustworthy portal open to file public complaints anyone can see the complainer and complaint text and that was not the case with the X Portal opened by FINK . That was one of the reasons that I didn’t use it myself. Why was denied to the public to see the complaints and who filed them? What did they do with that record and the investigation? I never try to mislead anyone as a matter of fact Flagler Live documents so realisticly the events that affect most Palmcoasters that I often documents my posts with them.
Paul says
And still no money for the mondex
Irwin M. Fletcher says
Interesting comments, on one hand there are questions about actual complaints versus number of validated complaints. It sounds like further investigation is needed that should extend past the website to ficus on physical evidence obtained in the affected areas for true validation.
The same diligence should be used to validate the need for airport improvements based upon numbers of flights at the airport. In an recent city council meeting the airport manager stated that there were nearly 180,000 operations last year of which roughly 160,000 were student touch and go operations which equates to almost 88% of all airport activity being non resident flight school activity. Based upon those estimations there is only about 12% general aviation operations at the Flagler County Airport, business jets and local plane owners and rentals. As a taxpayer and realist I have difficulty accepting that the FAA would approve grant money totaling 73 million dollars over 10 years for an airport with 20,000 general aviation operations. It seems ludicrous that the FAA would pour that amount of money into a local airport whose numbers are exponentially skewed by non resident student touch and goes. Something doesn’t seem right.
celia pugliese says
Sieger’s audacity to escoriate the totally justified absence of the city of Palm Coast officials from an event that takes away millions from FDOT/FAA Feds Taxpayers monies to fund FINK installations in an airport not utilized by the community as no one can get commercial flights to and from it. Just nuisance training field for pilot schools hammering Palm Coast!. Meanwhile our roads are neglected and no grants are requested to confront the tear and wear and traffic generated by growth! Much less to resolve the roads issues in the Mondex! Meanwhile just for attending these city and county painfully long meeting were we punish ourselves attending not to make a living or seek any political position or show off as injuriously accused and unfairly called as reported: “vainglorious commenters, gadfly demagogues. the same six and a half misinforming and disinforming dregs who keep monopolizing the lectern during public comment segments. They keep blabbering on about corruption and forensic audits and that damn splash pad or the utility or the legitimacy of Charles Gambaro, spitting falsehoods, slandering city staff and shrilling to the old propagandistic standard: repeat a lie often enough and people will start believing it. Performative grouchers they are. They address anything and everything because they don’t have anything better to do than play Joe McCarthy in Town CenteRepresent a cult, not a majority”. At this point I would say and apology is due, because when supposedly neutral reporting media appoints itself to be a judge is also toxic to the community that is attending meeting for so many hours pleading to preserve their safety, health, value of their homes and quality of life!