What to expect at Cecil in 2023 (Courtesy of the Jacksonville Business Journal) — 2022 saw big changes in the development of Cecil Airport and Spaceport, including the addition of another Boeing project and lease, and massive strides on the main project that broke ground in 2021. Though the area has seen growth this year, it plans to further that into 2023.
“Cecil has kind of crossed the threshold from an awesome place with a lot of potential to, well now it’s just really taken off,” said Matt Bocchino, Director of Cecil Airport and Spaceport.
The more than $100 million Boeing hangar project is expected to be completed next summer, as early as June or July, according to Bocchino. This project involves a large hangar building for aircraft maintenance, repairs and overhaul as well as access roads, a guard house, and buildings for office space and storage space.
Boeing previously said the project to work on Navy aircraft would mean hiring as many as 400 new workers in the Jacksonville area. The new Boeing parcel is also planned to begin work in January.
In 2023, Cecil will be breaking ground on the Approach Road Project, which is intended to essentially unlock the eastern section of the airport that contains over 300 acres of developable land. Funding from this project is coming from grants from Space Florida and the DEO in order to build the roadway next year.
In January, a ribbon cutting will take place for Hangar 1005, a hangar that the JAA has constructed partially from FDOT grant money, located behind the fire station on property at the northern end of Aviation Avenue, which will be housing ManTech, a technology solutions and services company serving federal government branches.
Another project that will be completed early next year is the mission control center, which is attached to the air traffic control center at the airport. The center, according to Bocchino, is the only dedicated mission control facility at a horizontal launch commercial spaceport.
Bocchino says two companies have expressed interest in rocket motor testing at Cecil next year, but there are currently no plans to launch any time soon.
“The focus is not necessarily on launch, although we’re open to launch. My goal has been to focus on the development around the spaceport and the launch will come organically from that,” said Bocchino. “So, we’re working on attracting businesses that need to do, for example, rocket manufacturing here.”
A primary focus for next year, according to Michael Stewart, Vice President of External Affairs with JAA, is to continue to work on infrastructure improvements and repair, particularly with the support and help from the Department of Defense.
“Sometimes people talk about overnight success, but we’ve been really laboring for some time on this,” said Stewart. “So, the goal is to really continue to develop and realize that all of this is really going to be the fruition of more than a decade of work.”