VERO BEACH – The Vero Beach City Council is expected to consider approving a new lease with longtime airport tenant Corporate Air at Tuesday’s evening meeting.
Corporate Air wants to expand its services and has requested to lease more than 64,000 square feet of land to do just that.
The company has been a tenant at the Vero Beach Municipal Airport since early 1985 and has been providing aviators with comforts from home, including food and coffee, lounges, Internet service and lavatories. Corporate Air also provides fuel and hangar space.
The land lease for Parcel 21 would amount to a monthly payment of nearly $1,252 for the next 30 years – a total of $450,717. Parcel 21 is located immediately south of Runway 11R/29L, the airport’s main east/west runway.
Rodger Pridgeon, Corporate Air’s president, has plans to construct a new headquarters office building on the site, along with additional aircraft hangars. Pridgeon has told the city he intends to serve a growing clientele of corporate jet owners and operators.
Corporate Air is currently located at 3200 Airport West Dr.
Along with considering the lease at the Vero Beach Municipal Airport, the Vero Beach City Council is expected to discuss water and sewer rates, the possibility of enacting a local vendor preference ordinance similar to the county’s, and numerous items that both City Councilman Brian Heady and City Manager Jim Gabbard have under their matters on the agenda.
Gabbard has asked members of the city’s staff to make various presentations regarding the opening of Humiston Park, which was held Saturday, an update on the city’s latest Utility Commission meeting, and a presentation comparing the city’s electric rates with other municipality-owned utilities, investor-owned utilities and Florida Power and Light’s rates.
Heady, who has 10 items listed under his matters, plans to discuss the city’s Web site and Internet connection for meetings, along with the Orlando Utility Commission contract, and his continuing feud with Gabbard over not receiving requested written documentation.
How many items Heady will be able to bring up or expects to discuss remains unknown.
Vice Mayor Sabe Abell has requested the council to discuss efficiencies for the city council meetings.
The Vero Beach City Council meeting will be held Tuesday, starting at 5 p.m., an hour earlier than usual due to the length of the agenda.
