|
Ocala
Star-Banner - August 31, 2001
JOE
CALLAHAN
Senior Staff Writer
OCALA — Two state lawmakers who represent portions of Marion County
want to create a transportation authority so they can secure funding
to study whether an 11-county regional airport is needed and where
it should be located.
The announcement was made this week during a meeting with a group
called the North Central Florida Commerce Corridor, launched by
two men who wanted to establish a viable North Central Florida Regional
Airport to attract business to an 11-county area.
The legislators' plans are not backed by some Marion County officials,
who have been trying for two years to establish a regional airport
somewhere between Ocala and Gainesville. The Gainesville area currently
has a commercial airport and Ocala's facility is considered general
aviation.
Ocala Mayor E.L. Foster said he has repeatedly asked the corridor
group to ''back off.''
''I do not support this group and asked them to back off until we
can complete our feasibility study,'' said Foster, adding that money
has been obtained to complete the study to determine the best location
for the airport. ''We are going with our plans, no matter what they
do.''
Foster has been adamant that any new regional airport should be
located in Marion County because, he says, Ocala is more centrally
located between the three major airports in Orlando, Jacksonville
and Tampa than another location further north.
Foster says the current airport off Southwest 60th Avenue would
be perfect.
''I do believe the current location is at the perfect location,''
said Foster. ''But a regional feasibility study will tell us for
sure. I can tell you it will mostly likely be in Marion County.''
Foster said the study will look primarily at Marion County and southern
Alachua County.
The corridor group, known as NCFCC, organized Tuesday's meeting
and invited eight state lawmakers to attend the planning session.
Only four of the eight showed up for the meeting, including Rep.
Dennis Baxley, Rep. Ed Jennings, Senator Rod Smith and Rep. Perry
McGriff
Jennings, D-Gainesville, will introduce the bill and Baxley, R-Ocala,
promised to back the legislation to establish a regional authority.
The transportation authority must be established before the state
will provide money for the feasibility study.
Jennings, whose district stretches from Alachua County down to State
Road 40 on the west side of Ocala, said despite party affiliation
differences, he and Baxley wanted to look hard at the transportation
issues that will affect both counties.
''The corridor group is just one of many groups we have heard from
and we believe it would be best to start over, create a regional
transportation authority and let a feasibility study determine whether
we even need an airport now or 20 years down the road,'' Jennings
said.
Jennings said the idea is to get all 11 counties in north central
Florida to the table and work together for the common cause.
Baxley agreed that all the communities should work together.
''I have no problem discussing and exploring transportation issues
in the region,'' said Baxley, adding he hopes to talk to Foster
soon about the issues.
Christopher Thurow, one of the founders of the NCFCC, said a regional
airport would provide a stimulus for greater economic development
in the region.
''Businesses would be more attracted to coming to an area that has
a regional airport that has commercial service,'' said Thurow, whose
full-time job is director of information technology for Bradford
County. ''We now plan to meet with more legislators and Mayor Foster.''
The group will meet again Sept. 19 in the Villages, and it hopes
to attract more legislators, including Rep. Nancy Argenziano, Rep.
Joe Pickens, Rep. Hugh Gibson and Senator Anna Cowin.
Baxley will hold another meeting at Central Florida Community College
on Sept. 22 to discuss numerous issues, including a regional airport.
Thurow and Harald Kegelmann, who both head the NCFCC, had been hoping
to convince Ocala
officials buy into their project. Foster said Tuesday that will
never happen, especially considering the group chose not to wait
until Ocala's feasibility study was completed.
From the beginning, the NCFCC has advocated transforming Ocala's
airport into a regional commercial airline hub serving the counties
of Marion, Alachua, Bradford, Dixie, Gilchrist, Citrus, Levy, Putnam,
Sumter, Lake, and Union.
Gainesville's airport would become a general aviation facility.
Joe Callahan can be reached at joe.callahan@starbanner.com or paged
at 898-9649.
See
August 31, 2001, issue of Ocala Star-Banner for original
article
|
