SHARE:
South Central: Growing Strong
Agricultural experience puts South Central Florida on the fast track to green energy success.
Zoom, zoom ...
Sebring may be small in size, but it looms large in the annals of sports car racing. Here, nestled among citrus groves and cattle ranches, is Sebring International Raceway, the oldest permanent road racing track in North America. Every year on the third Saturday of March, this one-of-a-kind venue draws thousands of fans to witness the grueling “12 Hours of Sebring Endurance Race,” part of the prestigious American Le Mans Series.
 Businesses locating at Sebring Regional Airport enjoy many advantages: excellent air, road and rail connections, plus eligibility for various tax credits and tariff exemptions. [Photo: Heartland Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 1240] |
Development Hub
Sebring Regional Airport, the only U.S. airport to encompass both a Foreign Trade Zone and a Community Redevelopment Agency, is a major hub for economic development in Florida’s heartland. About 700 employees work for a variety of companies at the airport’s commerce park in businesses that include animal hide tanning, vintage automobile restoration and aircraft repair.
The 2,000-acre airport is itself an Enterprise Zone; businesses locating here may be eligible for many related tax credits and refunds. On-site businesses also may receive various tariff and duty exemptions thanks to the airport’s designation as U.S. Foreign Trade Zone No. 215.
In addition, Sebring Regional Airport is South Central Florida’s designated Rural Economic Development Catalyst Project site. Infrastructure planning (roads, storm water retention, utilities, site planning, etc.) is under way for the 100-acre catalyst site, where officials hope to land healthcare and life science companies. The anticipated costs for long-term infrastructure improvements total $38.7 million, officials say, and full-press marketing of the site is set to begin in 2010.
In the meantime, plans are moving ahead for other airport infrastructure improvements: a new $700,000 fuel farm; a $3.8-million rehabilitation of Runway 14-32; and extension of Runway 18-36 to accommodate larger private aircraft now and perhaps, regional commercial air service in the future.
