The Titusville-Cocoa Airport Authority is receiving $5.8 million dollars from a state grant program to help create 900 jobs.
Governor Ron DeSantis was in Brevard County Thursday to announce the grant provided by the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund.
The governor said the money will be used to provide a direct link between the Space Coast Innovation Park and the Space Coast Regional Airport.
“Our role I think is to say what infrastructure do we need in this area, to make this part of Florida, to make it the number one place for space anywhere in the entire world,” said DeSantis.
He said the money will be used to build the 3,200 feet of roadways necessary to connect the two.
Once completed, the Space Coast Innovation Park will house seven commercial buildings across a 1.4 million square foot space, and put $24.6 million back into the local economy.
DeSantis said he’s incredibly proud of the growth and development that’s happened on the Space Coast over the last 15 years, and said it’s a testament to why so many businesses in the industry keep picking Florida for their next big project.
DeSantis was asked whether that next big project might be the headquarters of SpaceX, a company that already has employees and space operations along Florida’s Space Coast.
Founder Elon Musk said he would move his company’s headquarters from Hawthorne, California for political reasons. DeSantis said Florida would be the ideal spot for SpaceX HQ, but he’s not holding his breath.
“I think this is a great spot. I mean, this would be a great spot to have a headquarters here on the Space Coast. And we are doing a lot of things right. But, I'm not promising anything or optimistic about it, because I just think that they've done a lot in Texas over the years,” said DeSantis.
The Florida Job Growth Grant Fund is an economic development program aimed at promoting public infrastructure and workforce training in the state.
In fiscal year, 2022-2023, 18 grants were awarded throughout the state.
Watch the full press conference here:
