The Flagler County Commission today approved leasing 3.5 acres of county airport land to a company for $1,089 a month per acre, where the company will build a massive, 52,000-square-foot complex of four hangars and offices, and in turn lease the spaces to various companies. The company will build a huge apron, a taxiway to the runway and a parking lot.
There are no current plans to lease to an aviation school. But the lease does not preclude that possibility. Commissioner Kim Carney attempted to have that allowance eliminated. She did not succeed. The arrangement is also different from the 2004 arrangement that led to the county building a hangar for the Ginn Companies, and the county ending up holding a $2 million loan after Ginn went into bankruptcy.
The lease term is for 30 years with two 10-year extensions. The facility, at the south side of the airport on Finn Way, the road that leads to the control tower, and where the Mosquito Control District and the National Guard Armory are located, will be five times the size of the old Ginn hangar, Airport Director Roy Sieger said. (That hangar is 14,000 square feet.) It is also of comparable size to the Sheriff’s Operations Center in Bunnell. The airport has 138 acres of developable property on its south side.
Upstate Companies II of St. Augustine, a commercial and residential construction firm owned by Brian Zaczek, intends to build the $4 million complex at its expense. But it will also be reaping the rental benefits, with the county’s share remaining at a little over $1,000 per acre, plus an annual increase of 3 percent.
“This will also provide additional business space to attract other aviation businesses, employment opportunities,” Sieger said, “plus it’ll provide additional fuel sales for the airport’s revenue stream in addition to the land lease.”
“What is the probability of another flight school coming to Flagler County as a result of this project?” Carney asked.
“I don’t know,” Sieger said. Residents around the airport for several years have complained about existing flight schools’ regular buzz of takeoffs and landings at the airport.
“We could not stop it because of the lease. We take FAA and FDOT grants,” Sieger said, referring to the Federal Aviation Administration and the state Department of Transportation. “We have to allow people to do whatever business they want to do if it’s aviation related. You can’t stop legitimate aviation uses.”
In any case, since the county currently leases space to flight schools, “we would not want to get into a discrimination lawsuit,” Commissioner Andy Dance said, by way of a question to the county attorney. County Attorney Michael Rodriguez agreed, deferring to Sieger on the constraints of the lease. Dance was hoping that Zaczek would limit his tenants so that flight schools aren’t primary users of the eventual facility.
“The one hangar we’re looking at bringing an avionic [or repair] shop that’s currently in Daytona, they want to move up to this airport,” Zaczek said, after lavishing much praise for Sieger–timely praise, too, now that Sieger’s boss and protector is resigning. Zaczek was just as complimentary of Deputy County Attorney Sean Moylan. “The other one would be our primary hangar, and the other two, I can’t disclose right now, but it’s not a flight training.” He suggested that there may be another building project in the future.
In the meantime it is, Sieger said in answer to a question by Commissioner Greg Hansen, a build-it-and-they-will-come scenario. Possible uses are aircraft sales, leasing and rentals, flight training, aircraft charter and air taxi companies, aircraft management, aircraft storage, maintenance, repair and overhaul, and any other aviation-related service.
Upstate Companies will be the property manager, subleasing at will, though each sublease must still gain county approval and follow county and airport rules. Upstate Companies may also mortgage the property.
“I think it’s a wonderful project. We appreciate you considering our airport for it,” Commission Chair Leann Pennington said.
The company will be responsible for maintenance and for making repairs to all portions of the facility. Upon the expiration or termination of the lease, all structures revert to the county.
The commission asked no questions about the risks to the county, in case Upstate Companies were to default on a mortgage, assuming it took one out to build the facility.
In 2004, the county agreed to build the 14,000-square-foot hangar for the Ginn Companies at the airport, only for Ginn to go bankrupt and leave the county–and taxpayers–responsible for the $2 million cost. The difference in this case is that the county is not building any part of the structure and would not likewise be responsible for the mortgage default, though it would not own the building after that default: the mortgage lender would.
Greg says
Great deal for the county. I hope it has great success.
Peace for Palm Coast says
They just rolled out the red carpet for this guy, like they do with flight schools! We aren’t even being told what they’re going to do there. Maintaining and repairing jet engines? More flight schools? Charter flights? Who knows? How loud will that be? Leann “not that many (noise complaints)” Pennington can’t wait! Thank you, Commissioner Carney, for asking real questions, while the rest of them are happy to ruin our community!
Irwin M. Fletcher says
Wake up and realize the potential for the airport as a business park. Scrap that piddly little flight school airport and reutilize the property for real commerce and bring some money into the city/county. A retail area for all these big box stores to go with some light industrial use is a home run. Sell the property to a developer keep the main runway for business use and use that money and the FAA grants to build a flight school airport on the west side on less prime property. Hey leadership, you are missing out on a great opportunity for the future of our county.
RobdaSlob says
Nice try – but can’t do that. When the county accepted FAA AIP funding they became obligated to:
– Operate the airport for public aviation use
– Maintain the airport safely
– Keep it available on reasonable, nondiscriminatory terms (which is why the County cannot prohibit flight schools either in these new buildings or in others).
These assurances are binding obligations with the federal government subject to legal action (lawsuits) if not followed.
Besides that what makes you think anyone on the “west side” wants an airport in their backyard.
The tact you are proposing is quite often tried by developers salivating over money they can make off of airport property. Which is why the Federal government set up the system that is in place today – it keeps a minority position from a broader national system.
Irwin M. Fletcher says
Hey Rob. An airport will always be in somebody’s back yard eventually. I feel for the people who currently live around this flight school airport, I get the feeling they are cool with the airport but didn’t sign up for the clowns at the flight schools. A way to maximize the financial impact of the airport property while moving the nuisance away seems to help all involved. I just figured there would be less NIMBYS on the west side.
Ll, Z, K, U sections says
I agree with Irwin. The community and businesses which surround this airport do not want it here any longer due to Roy’s excuse for flight students & the inability to stop them. Then, exactly, how did you stop them on Sunday. Don’t worry Roy, your’e next to go after Heidi. Decommissioning this airport can be done by downloading a simple form from the FAA’s website. Use the land for commerce. Shopping. Dr’s offices. Or better yet, a city walk. Citizens have been asking for better dining choices, along with a city walk. Get rid of this disturbance of a whole in the ground. All flights antagonize cictizens coming in from Daytona and Ormond. Why? Because those 2 areas care about the noise students cause and enforce abatement. Leann, we will celebrate with a parade when your time is up. Thank you Kim for asking the right questions.