DEFUNIAK SPRINGS, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) – Governor Ron DeSantis announced more than $12 million in funding through the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund to support workforce development and infrastructure improvements in Northwest Florida. The announcement was made Monday morning at Pensacola State College.
The funds will be distributed to entities across the Panhandle, including Pensacola State College, Santa Rosa County, Jackson County, and the City of DeFuniak Springs.
DeFuniak Springs received a $3 million grant to expand the DeFuniak Springs Municipal Airport. The funds will be used to construct two 6,400-square-foot hangars, one 10,000-square-foot hangar, a taxiway, an access road, and associated utilities.
DeFuniak Springs Mayor Bob Campbell highlighted the significance of the expansion.
“We are the only airport in Walton County,” Campbell said. “We have got a lot of room here for expansion. We have a lot of corporate jet owners on the south end of this county that are having to park their jets elsewhere and so we are going to accommodate, and we believe this place will load up in a short period of time with a lot of that personnel.”
The expansion is expected to create a workforce talent pipeline and generate 500 high-quality jobs over the next decade, with a total estimated fiscal impact of over $12.3 million.
DeFuniak Springs Interim City Manager Koby Townsend emphasized the city’s long-term goal of economic development.
“It has been the mission of the city council and the mayor for years now to bring in economic development and more jobs for the citizens who live here,” Townsend said. “As we see this growth and we see more people moving to the area, we have to be able to support them and the city is going to be a catalyst in hopefully being able to secure those jobs.”
Officials are still seeking additional funding to complete the project but expect to break ground on the new hangars within the next two years.
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