$22M INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT BEING MADE AT CRESTVIEW AIRPORT

22 MILLION DOLLARS, THAT’S RIGHT. 22 MILLION DOLLARS OF IMPROVEMENTS TO ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT AIRPORTS TO SUPPORT OUR MILITARY DEFENSE, THE CRESTVIEW INDUSTRIAL AIRPARK IN NORTH CRESTVIEW. JUST A SHORT 5 MINUTE TRIP BY AIR FROM EGLIN AFB, HURLBURT AFB, DUKE AFB, AND OF COURSE, THE NEW 7TH SPECIAL FORCES CANTONMENT CENTER, YOU CAN HOPEFULLY SEE THE WRITING ON THE WALL HERE. THESE IMPROVEMENTS AND A NUMBER OF MILITARY MISSIONS TO OUR AREA WERE BECAUSE OF MILITARY STREAMLING PROCESS TO SAVE MONEY. FROM THE STANDPOINT OF FUTURE STREAMLINING AND FROM WHAT I HERE, MILITARY DOWNSIZING IS NOT A BAD THING FOR US, IF YOU UNDERSTAND THE WHOLE PICTURE. STAY TUNED.

September 07, 2011 6:36 PM
Brian Hughes, Crestview News Bulletin
Members of the Crestview Area Chamber of Commerce PILOT young professionals committee learned about the importance of both Crestview’s airport and the county’s commercial airport in the region’s economic future. And, they learned, our regional airports are integral to their own professional growth as well. Okaloosa County Airports Director Greg Donovan spoke to the group at its August meeting, sharing updates on airports infrastructure projects and offering a business profile of Vision Airlines, the newest tenant at Northwest Florida Regional Airport, which made VPS its hub. “From a career standpoint, you are the future of our community,” Donovan told the group. “What we are building at our airport system is something you’ll inherit.” The ongoing $22 million in infrastructure improvements that began several years ago at Bob Sikes Airport is preparing the airport, which boasts the region’s longest runway, for future growth. Current projects include a new, enhanced storm water drainage system, a tenant hangar, and wider taxiways and turns to handle the world’s largest aircraft. A recently announced project to acquire land for a U.S. Highway 90 front entrance for the airport is also picking up momentum, Donovan said. It will facilitate getting large trucks to and from airport tenants, and eliminate airport traffic having to go through residential neighborhoods. “It was kind of a speed-bump to our development,” Donovan said of the current access, adding that an $11 million access road project “opens all kinds of doors.” “We’re putting in the infrastructure to accommodate massive companies to come here,” Donovan said. Some PILOT members were surprised to learn that their taxes don’t fund the airport improvements he described. “All of it is money that is generated in the airport system,” Donovan explained. “If you’ve not been to the airport, you’re not paying one dime toward what’s happening at the airport. Improvements at the county’s commercial airport include four new terminal gates due to open in October, Donovan said. The University of West Florida Haas Center for Business Research and Economic Development recently reported the airport has a half-billion-dollar impact on the region, he added.