Collier County Officials Approve Incentives
Southwest Florida wants
Safire Aircraft to move into its neighborhood. Collier County
commissioners on Tuesday approved more than $1 million in local
incentives they hope will give them a leg up in a competition to
win over Miami-based jet maker Safire Aircraft Co. They are part of
a larger inducement package for Safire that could cost the state
and county more than $10.4 million.
As part of its approval of incentives for Safire on Tuesday, the
commission designated the Immokalee Regional Airport, also known as
the Florida Tradeport, a "brownfield," an area with perceived or
actual environmental contamination. The designation will allow
Safire to qualify for an additional tax refund bonus of $2,500 for
each job it creates through Florida's Qualified Target Industry
incentive program. In total, the company could qualify for as much
as $6.65 million in state tax relief through the program.
Twenty percent, or $1.33 million, would come from Collier County
as a local match if the company chooses the Immokalee airport and
that's what commissioners approved on Tuesday. The match for the
QTI program will come from the county's general fund.
In becoming a brownfield, the Immokalee Regional Airport has
joined the ranks of downtown Jacksonville, Clearwater and Pompano
Beach, which have the same designation. There are several
brownfields in Lee County.
Despite its negative connotation, the label comes with a variety
of benefits. It qualifies local governments for state and federal
money for redevelopment and cleanup. Benefits for businesses
include a $2,500 bonus tax refund for each new job created,
voluntary cleanup tax credits and cleanup liability protection,
low-interest loans for environmental assessment and cleanup,
expedited permitting and sales tax exemptions on building
materials.
Tammie Nemecek, executive director of the Economic Development
Council of Collier County, said the commission's vote Tuesday was
an important one because it signals how serious the county is about
luring Safire to Collier County. She indicated the package could
give the county an edge over competitors that have yet to approve
incentives for the manufacturer.
Safire has expressed interest in locating an assembly plant at
the Immokalee Regional Airport, which has the potential to create
more than 700 new jobs in Collier County. But the company is
considering other sites in Florida and other states.
"We will indicate to the company and notify them that everything
has been approved by the Board of County Commissioners," Nemecek
told The Naples Daily News after the commission's approval. "The
next step would be for them to come back to us and request that we
move on to the next step, which will be some sort of land
negotiations."
A land lease is the only part of the deal that's missing. The
lease still has to be negotiated by the Collier County Airport
Authority, which runs the Immokalee airport. And that will only
happen if Safire decides to pursue Immokalee as a location for its
assembly plant. Safire is expected to come up with a short list of
sites for its plant soon.