The Jacksonville Aviation Authority has awarded Jacksonville-based RS&H a $285,652 contract to develop a comprehensive land use and infrastructure plan for Cecil Airport’s eastern corridor.
It is the latest in a series of assignments cementing the Jacksonville-based firm as a key partner in the redevelopment of the former naval air station.
The contract calls for RS&H to evaluate site feasibility, environmental constraints, utility needs and phased capital improvements to ready the property for aeronautical and commercial tenants.
The study area spans land north and east of Cecil’s runways, acreage the authority said it has identified as a priority for near- and long-term development.
The work builds on RS&H’s 2025 Cecil Airport and Spaceport Master Plan Update and a 2017-18 nonaeronautical development study. Deliverables include a recommended land use plan, development feasibility analysis and National Environmental Policy Act regulatory road map with associated implementation cost estimates, all expected within about six months.
“RS&H brings unparalleled global experience in both aviation and aerospace, and has an intimate understanding of Jacksonville from years of partnership with JAA,” Sol Brotman, a JAA board member and chair of its Jacksonville Aerospace Development Committee, said at an April 8 meeting. “We look forward to presenting more information about this in August.”
Brotman said the development had drawn interest from individuals and businesses. He said JAA Chief Operating Officer Tony Cugno and Chief Development Officer Jay Cunio “are currently collaborating with neighbors who are eager to be involved in future developments at Cecil Airport.”
The eastside plan is one of two active assignments for RS&H at Cecil. The firm also recently was selected to lead the airport’s pursuit of a commercial horizontal re-entry license, a Federal Aviation Administration regulation that allows commercial spacecraft to return from space and land on a conventional runway.
It is a $600,000 effort funded by Space Florida that would authorize spacecraft to return from orbit, moving Cecil closer to becoming a full two-way spaceport hub. The licensing process could stretch to 2028, Cecil managing director Matt Bocchino said in March.
The relationship between JAA and RS&H dates to at least 2010, when the firm assisted Cecil in obtaining its horizontal launch license. In its re-entry proposal, RS&H cited the organizations’ history, as well as a portfolio of work on projects including the Woomera Test Range in Australia, Lelystad Spaceport in the Netherlands and Prestwick Spaceport in Scotland.
The JAA board voted unanimously in August 2025 to pursue the re-entry license. The authority has framed Cecil’s development in commercial terms, with RS&H noting in its re-entry proposal that “no spaceport survives on launch revenue.”
In March, the Florida Senate unanimously approved legislation amending JAA’s charter to formalize the agency’s role in growing Cecil as an aerospace hub.
“Both management and the board recognize Cecil Airport as a distinctive regional economic driver. We believe that Cecil should be considered as a strategic national asset and are actively working to formalize this status for executive and legislative actions,” Brotman said.