The Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport Authority is steaming ahead with plans for new aeronautical development, carving out an opportunity for businesses to nestle into the East Valley's rising employment hub. An announcement made by the airport authority detailed their release of a request for qualifications (RFQ), signaling the search for a developer to reimagine eight acres of land, recently cleared on their property.
This tract of land once accommodated U.S. Air Force structures and sits snug by Taxiway Tango, offering a chance for expansion with an optional extra 1.2 acres in pole position. This stretch of acreage has been likened to the airport equivalent of beachfront property, according to J. Brian O'Neill, executive director and CEO of the airport authority, in remarks reported by the Business Journal.
Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport has swiftly grown into a pivotal local enterprise with over 2,500 employees. High-profile firms such as Virgin Galactic, Gulfstream, and Xnrgy Climate Systems already take advantage of the airport's assets. The ripple effect of their investments is expected to surge the workforce numbers past 4,000 within the next year to eighteen months. Developers keen on seizing this development opportunity should mark their calendars for a pre-submittal meeting on October 15, as noted in the RFQ.
Prospective qualifiers have until November 7 to clarify details and must submit their RFQ by November 21. The submissions will be judged primarily on the applicant's understanding and approach to the project, a critical aspect reported by ABC 15 News. The airport is setting the base land lease rate at no less than 55 cents per square foot annually, for a term up to 49 years.
For the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, the past thirty years post-Williams Air Force Base's closure, has been a story of transformation. The airport authority has been committed to compensating for the loss of thousands of jobs that occurred due to the base's shuttering.
