OK Burns Flat Spaceport
This story from 2013 points out just how hard it is to find bonafide customers for Spaceport Camden. There are
a host of reasons why OK's Spaceport did not work out, but it's those reasons that must be closely understood
to avoid the same outcome, disappointment, and waste of money in Camden County. Presently, there appears
to be only one, non-space industry related occupant at the otherwise still derelict OK spaceport.
From NEWSOK
by Randy Ellis • Published: January 21, 2013
When state lawmakers passed legislation in 1999 creating the Oklahoma Space Industry Development Authority, state Sen. Gilmer Capps touted the project as potentially “creating some 22,000 jobs, as well as making Oklahoma a player in 21st century space industries.”
The idea was to take the third longest civilian airport runway in North America, located at what was once the Clinton Sherman Air Force Base before its 1969 closure, and use it as a catalyst to attract aerospace companies, including those interested in commercial space flight.
“I think it would have been a great idea if it would have worked,” Ryan said. It hasn't, he said. “It appears there's a lot of tax money being spent with very few results,” he said. “There's just nothing that goes on out there. We've lost jobs.”
The Oklahoma spaceport did attract a business called Rocketplane, but the company stayed just long enough to collect $18 million in state tax credits before leaving for Wisconsin and ultimately declaring bankruptcy.
A large, metal hangar with peeling red paint and the name “Rocketplane” above the door remains at the Burns Flat airpark as a stark reminder that space exploration investments can be risky.
Town Administrator Billy Yarbrough said Burns Flat has languished in space dreams long enough. It's time to quit star gazing and convert the spaceport to a more traditional regional industrial park, he contends.
Now is not the time to abandon the spaceport vision, counters Jack Benny, chairman of the Oklahoma Space Industry Development Authority.
“We are so close right now,” Bonny said. “I can't tell you which companies. ... When we talk to these companies, they don't want anyone to know they're talking to you.”
From GEORGIA TREND
by Ed Lightsey • Published: December 2013
“There is a piece of property we’re currently in negotiations on, and there’s a lot of interest from several companies that have indicated that if we are successful in getting a designation from the FAA to be a spaceport, they’re very interested in Camden County because of our geographic location,” Camden County Administrator Steve Howard says.
Which companies have bonafide interest in Spaceport Camden? How large is the possible customer base?
Is there a list of the possible companies we can see?
Have any of them expressed more than casual interest?
Is the US Government or NASA interested in Spaceport Camden to the extent they will fund it?
Besides the $3,500 per job created that the Camden Opportunity Zone designation provides, what is Camden able to offer as incentives?
Are there guarantees required from a tenant that Camden jobs are created before any Camden tax money is given to a company?
Does the State of Georgia have a Spaceport Authority?
Is there legislation being proposed in the 2016 session of the Georgia Legislature to fund incentives and/or development for Spaceport Camden?
What tax incentives are available now from the State of Georgia?
What incentives did Texas offer to win SpaceX at Boca Chica?
What does Oklahoma provide in support and incentives for its Spaceport?
What does Florida provide in support and incentives for its Spaceport?
What does Virginia provide in support and incentives for its Spaceport?
What does Alaska provide in support and incentives for its Spaceport?