FAA-funded contract staff have remained on the job
After the recent completion of a $11.5 million project to reconstruct primary Taxiway Delta, a wave of additional airport infrastructure and aviation-related facility development is on the horizon.
The City Commission recently accepted a combined Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) grant, in the amount of $1.2 million, to fund the design to reconstruct another of the airport’s primary taxiways. Taxiway Alpha runs parallel along the full length of the airport’s main Runway 15/33 and serves the airport businesses and users originating from the eastern half of the airport. Parallel taxiways enhance the airport’s safety, capacity, and efficiency by expediting access to and exit from the runway at multiple locations.
The completed design for the new air traffic control tower is currently under review though the City of Kissimmee’s construction Design Review Committee process that applies to any construction within the city limits. The projected construction cost for the new tower facility is $18 million, to be funded through grants from the FAA, FDOT, and airport matching funds. Money for FAA Airport Improvement Program and FDOT Aviation grants come from excise taxes charged on aviation fuel, and airport matching funds come from revenue generated from ground leases, aircraft landing fees, and other business activities at the airport, with no funding coming from City of Kissimmee tax revenue.
In an ironic twist of fate, while the FAA-staffed Orlando International Airport’s control tower has experienced unprecedented closures due to the federal government shutdown, the current Kissimmee control tower’s FAA-funded contract staff have remained on the job and paid throughout the federal closure.
At the Nov. 4 Kissimmee City Commission meeting, the board entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Kissimmee Airport Development Company, LLC (KADC) to explore options for master development of 129 acres of airport property that formerly served as the Kissimmee Golf Club. The MOU calls for KADC to perform a due diligence study of the property, including boundary and topographic surveys, at no cost to the city, to determine the feasibility and costs for future infrastructure development.
The parcel would need to be developed primarily with aviation-related facilities, to comply with FAA grant assurances, with a limited opportunity for non-aviation commercial/industrial uses along Jack Calhoun Drive. KADC is expected to report back to the commission in March 2026.
In additional airport news, a required resolution in support of obtaining U.S. Customs and Border Patrol clearance services for international flight is pending with Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office. Having Customs clearance at the airport has long been desired by the aviation business that provide aircraft fueling, catering, and car rentals service for visiting aircraft and would serve the vacation rental market on the west side of the county, as well as the business convention venues in Osceola and east Orange County.
For more information on the Kissimmee Gateway Airport, see https://bit.ly/3XnkC8l.
