Panama City (Fla.) Airport officials must be pinching themselves to see if they’re dreaming. The lucky Florida group has in hand a funded mandate to design and build an entirely new airport on donated land, nearby but well outside the city limits and with the enthusiastic support of environmentalists. The $250 million program is almost through its federal and state permit process (expected to conclude in the first quarter next year), and construction should begin next fall. If all goes according to plan, the new airport should be open for business in late 2008 or early 2009.
Panama City is located at the midpoint of the Florida panhandle coast–an area seeing a huge influx of second-home buyers. According to Ted Clem, executive director of the Bay County economic development alliance, some 3,000 mom-and-pop motel-room units along the shoreline–some dating back to the 1930s–are slated to be replaced by 10,000 condo units, each priced north of the $1 million mark. The area is growing, and the current airport, with its 6,300-foot runway, is not considered capable of supporting the type of prosperity civic leaders expect.
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