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Keystone Heights breaks ground for new fixed-base operator facility

Building to assist pilots, aeronautical services

Nick Blank
Posted 5/1/19

STARKE – Keystone Heights Airport officials broke out their groundbreaking shovels last Tuesday for the new Fixed-Base Operator facility.

The $1.2 million building, with a pilot’s lounge and a …

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Keystone Heights breaks ground for new fixed-base operator facility

Building to assist pilots, aeronautical services


Posted

STARKE – Keystone Heights Airport officials broke out their groundbreaking shovels last Tuesday for the new Fixed-Base Operator facility.

The $1.2 million building, with a pilot’s lounge and a larger conference room, is fully-funded by the Department of Transportation. The building is a few thousand feet away from the current FBO and the new property is 4,450 square feet. Construction will begin in two weeks with an estimated completion time of nine-to-10 months, officials said.

Office manager Maria Hitt has worked at the airport for about nine years. She said the new FBO was much needed. It was time for a step up in quality for the airport, she said.

“We were in such dire need of an FBO, not just for office space and administrative purposes, but really for our local and our transient pilots who stop in with their families in Keystone Heights,” Hitt said.

David Kirkland, airport board chairman, joked the event may have been the second groundbreaking at the airport since the U.S. Army began its operations in the 1940s. It was given to the city of Keystone Heights in 1947.

While pilots were drawn to the airport’s low fuel prices, Kirkland added the new building’s amenities were enticing for pilots. With the centralized location of the new FBO, Kirkland said the airport’s 2,400-acre property would be ready for more expansion.

“The new FBO will be a command center for airport development. One of the things we’re keying in on is businesses that are going to impact our local communities,” Kirkland said. “We want those dollars to stay local.”

The airport has an increased development interest. Its master plan calls for runway rehabilitation, a runway extension and the addition of several hangars. A $2.3 million state grant for an additional access road and broadband improvements was approved by then-Gov. Rick Scott in January.

“It’s very exciting, the airport is one of the cogs of the wheel,” Keystone Heights City Manager Scott Kornegay said. “Development here is the first step for the city. We’re excited about the growth opportunity.”

Airport board member Scott Fryar remembered touring other airports’ facilities and bringing potential floorplans back to the board. He said pilots needed a place to stay in extreme situations.

“One of the bad things about being in a rural area, if [pilots] get here at 1 o’clock in the morning, and I don’t know if Starke has a cab service anymore, but there’s nowhere they can go for shelter,” Fryar said. “I’ve heard stories a couple of times of people staying the night in their planes and just sleeping in there. We can’t have that.”

Fryar was pleased the new FBO going to offer a more professional and inviting environment to the pilot, and nearly triple the space. He added the old FBO would likely be leased to a private business like a flight school.

“As we expand, this (FBO) will be a part of the bigger picture,” Fryar said. “It’s a business like any other place.”