The future of the Punta Gorda Airport is, in part, contained in the Airport Master Plan, an important document prepared under the direction of the Airport Authority. It is revised every five-years and looks 20 years into the future. The Master Plan is based on past performance, current operations, and future projections. It also incorporates community demographics and needs, anticipated population growth, and economic indicators. The Master Plan reflects a vision for the future of the Airport in the community.
Based on extensive studies, the Authority concluded that the following priorities are necessary:
- Extension of Runway 4-22 (formerly 3-21)
- Installation of an ILS and MALSR to provide precisions approach capability for Runway 4-22
- Ultimate closure of Runway 9-27
- Development of landside facilities in the infield area between Runways 4-22 and 15-33
- Other landside and airside development, such as taxiway construction
- Commerce park development behind the racetrack, near the new Cheney Brothers site, which would support a Motorsports Center and provide commercial sites for Cheney Brothers anciliary business
Achieving these goals depends on the financial stability of the airport. Financial stability rests on the ability to attract new business while retaining current businesses at the airport. Through diversification within the aviation industry, support of general aviation, and marketing both aviation and non-aviation properties to potential tenants, and seeking the future potential of commercial service, the Airport will not only survive its current challenges, but will continue its service as an economic catalyst for the county.
Ideas for future planning, not found in the Master Plan, include a wide range of possibilities. One, in particular, is the idea of intrastate airline service -- commercial passenger service that would carry passengers from the Punta Gorda Airport to other Florida cities such as Tallahassee, Miami, Jacksonville, Pensacola. I have been in contact with a member of the legislature who is seeking to support airline service into Tallahassee, and will continue this conversation. Airline service is costly and the industry is fickle. Attracting an airline for intrastate service will require a showing of the potential for a return on investment. Conducting a feasibility study to show a need for this kind of service will be the first step. Once we can get this data in hand, we can start the process of attracting intrastate service.
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