Habersham approves FBO Drive as airport’s rental-car provider

Habersham County’s Board of Commissioners approved a one-year contract with FBO Drive for rental-car service at Habersham County Airport on Oct. 21, 2024, voting 4-1. Commissioner Tench cast the dissenting vote. The action makes FBO Drive the county’s contracted provider for airport rental cars under the agreement considered by the board.

The decision creates a formal route for travelers to obtain rental vehicles at the county airport and sets the county’s financial stake in that service. Under the approved arrangement, the county is to receive 12% of rental fees, an amount estimated at about $6,000 annually. The contract also matters because vendor selection alone did not establish the operating terms; the board’s approval supplied the separate governing action for the annual agreement.

The contract reached the county board after the Airport Commission considered the solicitation earlier that month. On Oct. 8, the commission voted 4-0 to recommend awarding the airport car-rental-services contract to FBO Drive and said the company would be the only firm under contract with the county. That recommendation moved the procurement from the airport body to the Board of Commissioners, which then approved the annual agreement on Oct. 21.

Airport Commission members unanimously supported forwarding FBO Drive’s selection to the county board, according to the commission’s approved minutes. At the board meeting, a majority of commissioners supported the annual contract while Tench opposed it. The board record also notes that Enterprise submitted a competing response to the request for proposals, but that submission was incomplete and did not include pricing.

The procurement recommendation and the board’s approval of the annual FBO Drive contract are completed actions recorded in the meeting materials. The agreement calls for the county to receive 12% of rental fees, with the cited potential annual revenue estimate of roughly $6,000. The records do not establish a signed contract date, a service launch date, later amendments, or the detailed terms under which airport users may rent vehicles.

The next public development would be a county contract record, agenda item or meeting record documenting implementation of the approved agreement, including when rental-car service began and whether its terms changed. Those questions remain unresolved in the meeting materials, even though commissioners have approved FBO Drive’s annual contract.