June 2018

104 105 A Florida State Certified Class AGeneral Contracting company. •Full Design-Build Services •Guaranteed Quality and Surplus Commitment •Pre-Construction Support •Cost Efficient, Cutting-Edge Solutions •Professional and Result’s Driven Approach •Uninterrupted Business Operations Mindset When You Choose Frasier Contracting, Inc. You Get: We would very much like to add you to our family of satisfied customers. Contact us today: 4100 Recker Highway, Winter Haven, FL 33880 Ph: (863) 967-5177•Fax: (863)965-8504 Email: darryl@frasiercontracting.com www.frasiercontracting.com License# CGCA36042 SEBRING REGIONAL AIRPORT & COMMERCE PARK CSX Railroad’s main line that goes right through the property, and can stop at each plant to unload rawmaterials.Willingham reports that the airport is currently in the process of redesigning and recon- structing that two mile spur, which was originally built during the Second World War. “Hopefully, the first phase will be under construction in the winter of 2019,” he says. “We’re also designing the reconstruction of our vintage World War II apron ramp. So, those are two examples of planning for the future; planning for additional capacity and growth and development.” Willinghamsays that over the next several years, the airport will extend its main runway and com- plete all of its rail and ramp reconstruction projects. With a great deal of real property available for development, it will also continue to look for more businesses that wish to relocate and take advantage of all of its amenities and facilities including the avail- abilityof Sebring’s excellent air,rail,and road access,as well as its intact infrastructure includingwater,sewer, utilities,andwaste collection. “I think that the crux of being successful in a small rural community,where, up till now, there hasn’t been a lot going on, is that we create our own future,” says Willingham in summation. “That’s the main thing. If we don’t do that, then somebody else is going to do it for us.” PREFERRED VENDORS n Frasier Contracting www.frasiercontracting.com n Turf Care Supply Corp. www.turfcaresupply.com around the state.”Not only is the airport part of a Department of Commerce-certified Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ),which helps increase its global com- petitiveness because rawmaterials can be flown into the airport tax-free,Willingham says it is the only airport in the country with its own Com- munity Redevelopment Agency (CRA). “That allows us to do a lot of things that nobody else can do,” he states. Recently, when the airport was trying to lure its newest tenant, CitraPac, a large frozen food manu- facturer to the Commerce Park to build a brand new 42,000-sq.-ft. plant, the CRA was able to contrib- ute a quarter of a million dollars to an incentive package that included $250,000 from the City of Sebring, $400,000 from Highlands County, plus a promise of another $400,000 in site improvements, for a total of $1.3 million in financial incentives. In return, CitraPac is expected to have a workforce of up to 240 people. “When we totally reconstructed our main runway, the CRA put half a million dollars in that project over and above what our state and federal partners supported,”Willingham notes.“We were able to strengthen the base in anticipation of the day when we had much larger planes landing here, so we wouldn’t have to tear our runway up again. So, there’s a lot incentive-wise things that we can do, that oth- ers just can’t do.” But being a busi- ness-friendly entity ex- tends beyond simply sup- plying funding incentives. “One of the things that we are able to deliver is efficient help if you need a turnkey solution for a facility,”Willingham avers. “We also help our tenants if they need help with permitting.What- ever their need is,we try to walk them through the mire of rules and regulations. I think that’s one of the things that separates us from others.” Among other advantages for businesses in the airport’s Commerce Park is a spur rail line from