Subject:
Title
Approval, Re: Resolution and Real Estate Contract for Sale of Property to ETA Space, Inc. in County-Owned Spaceport Commerce Park in Titusville.
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Fiscal Impact:
Net proceeds from the sale would be deposited into an account for use on park-related expenditures.
Dept/Office:
County Manager’s Office
Requested Action:
Recommendation
It is requested that the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) approve a Resolution and Real Estate Contract permitting the sale of approximately two and one-half (2.5) acres of land in the county-owned Spaceport Commerce Park in Titusville for $162,500 (or $65,000 per acre) to ETA Space, Inc., and that it authorize the Chair to execute all related documents upon the County Attorney's Office and Risk Management approval.
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Summary Explanation and Background:
ETA Space is a local, Brevard County-based firm that is working to develop and deploy advanced cryogenic fluid management systems for NASA and its commercial partners, along with customers in the energy industry sector. The company has received several NASA awards for its work on LOXSAT (liquid oxygen satellite), with its long-term focus on developing in-space propellant depots to support sustainable space exploration.
The company currently leases part of an industrial building in Rockledge, but is in need of a larger testing area and laboratory to perform its contract work. Working with county staff formerly assigned to the North Brevard Economic Development Zone (NBEDZ), the company identified a high-visibility lot in the Spaceport Commerce Park in Titusville for the construction of a new industrial facility, featuring approximately 6,000 sq. ft. of laboratory space, and 4,000 sq. ft. of office/administrative space, including small conference areas. The building is expected to cost $3 million.
Before it was dissolved, the NBEDZ - which served as the county’s authorized agent for developing and/or inducing the developments of county-owned lots in the park - was presented with a purchase offer from the company. NBEDZ staff conducted an economic impact analysis on the proposed project and presented its findings to the NBEDZ Special District board of directors, which approved the company’s purchase offer of $65,000 per acre for the approximately 2.5-acre site, as a project with the potential to create a more diversified local economy, given the firm’s product applications for multiple industry sectors.
Clerk to the Board Instructions:
Please provide signed copy of resolution and real estate contract to the CAO and CMO.