The purpose of this Golden LEAF grant is to support the construction of an airport taxiway connecting the Elizabeth City-Pasquotank County Regional Airport (ECPCRA) to the city-owned Aviation Park, which is under development. Development of the park will lead to significant additional investment by DRS Technologies and others, resulting in creation of approximately 500 jobs. The Elizabeth City Aviation Research & Development Park will also leverage the assets of the U.S. Coast Guard Station and its growing aircraft overhaul functions, workforce training capabilities of the Aviation Sciences Program at ECSU and the College of The Albemarle, and existing industry relationships to grow aviation businesses and jobs in the area. The Coast Guard Station has 10 on-site civilian contracting firms, (including Northrop-Grumman, Sikorski, SRA International, and DALCO) which employ 56% of the 1,865 workforce at the U.S. Coast Guard’s Air Station. Workforce development programs will be available at the Aviation Park through Elizabeth City State University’s Aviation Sciences Program and by the College of the Albemarle.
