Submitted By: Matthew Grow
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Presentation By: Matthew Grow
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Department: Aviation
FORMAL TITLE:
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Airport Development Inquiry Form, revised Airport Leasing and Property Development Policy, revised Airport Development Standards, and Airport Properties Website
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OCALA'S RELEVANT STRATEGIC GOALS:
Operational Excellence, Fiscally Sustainable
PROOF OF PUBLICATION:
N/A
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BACKGROUND:
Over the past decade, the City of Ocala has made significant strides to position Ocala International Airport (OCF) as both an economic driver and a development-ready property. The City has invested heavily in airfield infrastructure, capital improvement projects, and aviation facilities. This includes apron rehabilitation, taxiway and terminal upgrades, and partnerships with companies such as Sheltair Aviation, focusing on their hangar development efforts and occupancy in the general aviation terminal. Concurrently, Ocala has worked to activate its non-aviation parcels - over 400 acres of industrial/commercial land - through proactive marketing and the sale or lease of surplus property. These efforts include a pre-COVID era contract with the brokerage firm CBRE that yielded no closings, along with various sustained efforts to attract private-sector development consistent with the airport's long-term master plan.
Historically, the City's method of soliciting private investment at the airport relied on the traditional Request for Proposal (RFP) or Invitation to Negotiate (ITN) process. While thorough and transparent, these competitive procurement procedures often require extensive review, public advertisement, and multi-layered approvals - a sequence that can extend the timeline for new development to well over a year, particularly when Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approvals are involved.
Recognizing the need to streamline and modernize this process, the City has undertaken a comprehensive update of its Airport Leasing Policy, Development Standar...
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