EDA received airport project updates

BAY COUNTY, Fla. ( WMBB ) – Members of the Bay County Economic Development Alliance were given an update on several projects at Northwest Florida International Beaches Airport.

These projects are an effort to better accommodate the growing number of customers.

These projects will have a positive economic impact on the community. As the number of visitors flying to Panama City Beach continues to grow, so does Northwest Florida International Beach Airport.

“In March, we were up 22 percent over last year, which is a great time, but even prior to that, we were up 20% for January and February, which are slow months,” ECP Airport Executive Director Parker McClellan said.

Airport officials say they’re working on several expansion projects to keep up with the demand of customers.

“We’ve done a lot of parking projects. We’ve got a terminal build-out project, we’ve got an expansion of the back room. There’s a lot of construction happening at the airport.”

As some of these projects wrap up, McClellan says he’s already planning for several new projects, including expanding the baggage room.

“We’re doubling the capacity of our bags because the number of bags that people take on vacation is a large number and so we have a lot of bags. We have to work through all those things as we look to the future. We’ve got the terminal expansion, we’ve got a bunch of other projects that we’re kind of trying to finalize,” McClellan added.

McClellan says ECP’s success has opened the door to unique opportunities, including working with Canadian-based company Premier Aviation.

They’re establishing their first U.S.-based hub in Bay County, and it will help the airport with another upcoming project.

“They’re going to build a 100,000 square-foot hangar at the airport. That’s going to be 250 high-paying jobs. It’s a great opportunity for our community to continue to grow.”

Bay County Economic Development Alliance CEO Becca Hardin says partnering with different companies will have a huge economic impact on the local community.

“It really is our future as far as economic development and growth. As we bring these companies in, we’re really starting to get on the international and domestic radar screen for companies that know that we have a great airport,” Hardin said.

McClellan says many of these projects will help create hundreds of jobs, giving the local economy an extra boost.

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