Cleared for Take-Off

The landscape of Immokalee has been changing in recent years as developments such as Arrowhead Reserve at Lake Trafford bring single-family homes and a golf course to the area, a new branch of Hodges University offers college courses, and the Immokalee Technical Center (iTECH) begins to provide vocational training. “A lot of great things have happened in Immokalee to set it up for realistic growth,” says Pat Utter, vice president of commercial real estate for Collier Enterprises.

Still lagging, though, is the one piece that could transform Immokalee into a commercial and industrial hub—the Immokalee Regional Airport. As Penny Phillippi, executive director of the Immokalee Community Redevelopment Agency, points out, eastern Collier County still has undeveloped land available for growth, and the airport would provide crucial infrastructure needed to move forward.

Several factors have held back the airport’s growth, including lack of an approved master plan and facilities for tenants, and a runway that’s too short to accommodate cargo and jet traffic.
The Collier County Airport

Authority, which oversees the Immokalee Airport, Marco Island Executive Airport and Everglades Airpark, has gotten flak for not making things happen fast enough at Immokalee. “The perception is that things should have happened faster, but we are not in control of individuals having interest and then having them fall through,” says Theresa Cook, executive director of the Airport Authority. Plus, new buildings cannot be built at the airport until demand for them is proven.

Recently, though, the Federal Aviation Administration approved the airport’s 20-year master plan, which outlines the future of airport, including both aviation and non-aviation components. The airport encompasses 1,330 acres, approximately 800 of which are for non-aviation uses.

Everything in the master plan has a timeline, says Cook. First, the runway must be extended, but for that to happen, the county must purchase a 103-acre adjacent property owned by Collier Enterprises. That would allow the Airport Authority to site an air traffic control tower, and the FAA will have to conduct an environmental study. During this process, which could potentially take up to a year, applications for federal grants will be submitted to recruit businesses to the airport. For instance, the Airport Authority has already received funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to build a structure featuring five or six flex-use bay areas to house different businesses.

“We are trying to attract incubators to those spots, those that help startup business,” says Jim Murray, an Airport Authority board member. An incubator program was implemented years ago but never took off, notes Phillippi. Today, though, five parties already are interested in moving into 1,000 square feet of incubator space on airport grounds, she says. The CRA will conduct an application process for prospective tenants.

The Florida National Guard, which currently occupies a four-acre site, has plans for a 55,000-square-foot building to house its operations, which Cook believes will help spur the demand for business. “It will have a lot of economic impact on the community,” she says. And Murray is excited about the potential for further military presence, including possible air shows.

In its quest to find appropriate tenants, the Economic Development Council (EDC) of Collier County is assisting the Airport Authority by creating a business plan for the Immokalee Airport with the help of a Blue Ribbon Committee. Consisting of various Collier County businesspeople and community leaders, the committee’s mission is to turn the master plan into reality.
“The EDC has always been there trying to find tenants for us,” says Steve Price, a board member of the Airport Authority since its inception in 1993. “The problem was that we didn’t have a place to put tenants when they were interested, so the EDC just stepped back and waited for us to catch up.”

Development and activities near the airport are also important. The addition of Ave Maria just five miles from the airport is a selling point, and a longer runway could accommodate private jets. Also, a proposed hotel connected with the Seminole Casino in Immokalee would not only create more traffic at the Immokalee Airport but bring thousands of jobs to the area, says Phillippi. Plus, Collier Enterprises has plans to create the Town of Big Cypress, although the plan has stalled indefinitely due to the economy.

Infrastructure still needs to be built at the airport, but there is plenty of land and the EDC is encouraging businesses to consider Immokalee. As Utter notes, the town is only 19 miles from I-75 to the south and 30 miles to the north. And the airport is “dead center” of it all, adds Phillippi. “We are moving forward step-by-step,” says Cook. “The EDC is looking at the bigger picture and that is only helping the airport.”