ECONOMY
yachts at the port.
County Commission Chairwoman Linda Bartz asked Derecktor
to work with Fort Pierce Yacht and Ship “to come to an agreement
so that we can see success for both groups.”
The port isn’t the only county facility to reverse gears and head
into the maintenance, repair, overhaul and jobs creation business.
TIME TO THRIVE
County officials broke ground for a new 45,000-square-foot
hangar at the Treasure Coast International Airport in May. Ahrens
Companies won the bid. Completion is expected in the spring of
2020, county spokesman Erick Gill said. The cost of the hangar is
about $7.9 million which includes both design and construction.
Funding for the project comes from the Florida Department of
Transportation, Economic Development Administration and local
county funding.
The county will request bids from companies interested in
using the hangar for maintenance, repair and overhaul of planes
such as the Airbus A320, Embraer 175 business jets or the narrowbody
business park will train workers in the skills they need to be hired
for the airport jobs.
The city of Fort Pierce jumped into the mix late last year with
a decision to investigate starting a seaplane base in the Indian
River Lagoon just offshore from Veterans Memorial Park. The base,
which would be convenient for seaplanes flying to and from the
Bahamas, would bring more pilots and visitors into Fort Pierce’s
restored historical downtown, encouraging the hiring of more
people in its restaurants and retail shops.
A more intense focus on bringing jobs to the area is succeed-
34
Boeing 737. IRSC and the Aviator College at the airport’s
WWW.CITYOFFORTPIERCE.COM
CITYMANAGERSOFFICE@CITY-FTPIERCE.COM
772.465.4170
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ANTHONY INSWASTY
At the Fort Pierce Yacht & Ship dock at the port where maintenance, repair
and overhaul of mega yachts is already underway, the St. Nicolas is in for
some work. Behind it, My Vibrance is wrapped in a protective cover to keep
paint and fumes from entering the water or air.
ing, said Jill Marasa, vice president of business retention at the
St. Lucie County Economic Development Council. Over the last
18 months, 344 jobs were created inside the city boundaries and
another 166 outside the city as companies expanded. Maverick
Boat Group constructed a new building and added 100 jobs to its
existing 271 jobs, for example.
“It’s really the time and the place for St. Lucie County to thrive
and to be the economic engine for our region and our state,”
said Dzadovsky. v
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