Archived story
As originally published
Habersham County’s latest documented action to add hangar space at Habersham County Airport came July 15, 2024, when the County Commission approved ground leases for Charles Brammer Jr. and FBO Drive to build hangars on two planned sites. Each site was described as 60 by 60 feet, with a 20-year lease term. The approval authorized the arrangement, but the meeting minutes do not show that either lease was signed or that work began.
The decision matters because it shifts the immediate construction investment to private lessees while giving the county a future interest in the facilities. Under the approved arrangement, the hangars would revert to county ownership when the 20-year terms end, and officials said the county’s cost would be limited to running electricity to the sites. For airport users and taxpayers, the practical questions are whether usable new space will materialize, how site preparation will be paid for and whether the other two contemplated sites will move forward.
The lease approval followed a year of attempts to shape a workable private-development process. In June 2023, the Airport Commission discussed using an RFP to find a party willing to build hangars to airport plans. By August, officials were considering whether site preparation could be included in a potential fiscal 2025 Georgia Department of Transportation request, while their consultant said the agency would not fund the hangar construction itself. That fall, the commission discussed a preliminary package for four lease areas, then refined scoring, conflict safeguards and negotiation language before revisiting 20-year terms in June 2024.
County officials framed the project as a ground-lease arrangement rather than a county-financed hangar build. Airport Consultant Phil Eberly of Lead Edge presented the July item to the commission, and the approved terms placed construction investment with Brammer and FBO Drive. Earlier discussions show commissioners trying to protect the selection process because some Airport Commission members could themselves submit proposals; they considered using a scoring group, with criteria including minimum rent, financial planning, qualifications, economic impact and capital investment.
What is confirmed is the commission’s approval of two leases for two of four planned areas. Private construction, county electrical service and eventual county ownership were components of the approved deal, not documented completed acts. The record does not establish a construction start, completion, occupancy, lease payment or transfer of a hangar to the county. It also does not show whether the proposed GDOT support for site preparation was requested or awarded. Although the minutes confirm approval, they do not give a vote tally.
The next public indication of progress would be a later Airport Commission or County Commission record showing that the leases were executed and identifying responsibility, funding and timing for paving, site preparation or electrical work. A procurement notice or later meeting action could also answer whether the remaining two sites in the four-area concept will be offered again or assigned. Until then, the number of hangars that will actually be built and the date airport users could use them remain undecided.