Mesa Hangar will soon commence construction on a 23 acre development at Mesa's Falcon Field airport. The project will offer opportunities for new and expanding aviation businesses. A groundbreaking ceremony on January 14 marked the start of the project.

The six-building, $65 million build will include large aircraft hangarage in addition to ancillary office and manufacturing space, aircraft staging ramp and vehicle parking areas. Hangars will be offered ranging from 3,600 sq ft to 14,400 sq ft with high ceilings and high, wide doors to accommodate corporate jets and specialised fixed-wing and helicopter uses.

Davcon Aviation and Mesa Hangar are building the phased project on more than one million square feet of vacant City of Mesa-owned land on the northwest side of the airport. The first phase is expected to be completed by April 2021, with the second phase to be completed by November 2021. The land will be leased from the city for 40 years.

“Mesa Hangar plans to bring energy efficient, solar powered aircraft hangars, aviation services, aircraft maintenance facilities and offices to the northwest corner of Falcon Field airport,” Mesa Hangar manager Randy Hansen says. “This master planned, integrated project will create an incredibly efficient and pleasing place for aviation and aerospace businesses to locate.”

“The current hangar occupancy at the airport is nearly 100 per cent, so these facilities are very much needed,” adds airport director Corinne Nystrom. “We are pleased to partner with Davcon Aviation and Mesa Hangar to help attract new business and jobs to Mesa, expand the diverse mix of aviation and aerospace business already located here at the airport, and provide opportunities for existing airport businesses to expand.”

“This Falcon Field project will exceed our competitors' and customers' expectations,” David Wakefield, managing partner at Davcon Aviation explains. “It will be a complete aviation development with a new fixed base operator facility, maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities, fuel farm and more. The development creates a more contemporary design for Falcon Field and enhances the entire sense of arrival from the approach along Greenfield Road. It will provide a fresh option for the private aviation industry experience.”

Falcon Field is the hub of Mesa's Falcon business district. It is in an opportunity zone designated by the US Treasury Department to spur investment. Emerging companies and investors can participate in the programme. Airport tenants may fund improvements or other capital needs in leased space with proceeds from an opportunity zone fund investment.

“Mesa Hangar, LLC and Davcon Aviation, LLC are excited to develop one the most modern aviation projects in the nation,” Wakefield said. “It is approximately 393,000 square feet consisting of six hangars with attached office space. The project has several architectural innovations involving multiple exterior colours and variations of the exterior texture. Additionally, there are large glass elevations allowing for open lighting. One of our primary goals was to design a highly energy efficiency project. This goal was exceeded with the final design that includes insulated exterior walls and roofs, LED lighting, insulated glass, high efficiency split system air conditioning units, solar systems and battery storage.

Occupants can select from among a variety of options to customise the hangars and offices, including ceiling fans, sealed floors, mezzanine storage and restroom amenities. The development also features abundant parking and easy access from the street.

“Our leasing partners at Leading Edge Aviation have done an incredible job of getting the word out about our high-quality development,” Hansen concludes. “Pre-leasing activity has been strong, and we anticipate the majority of facilities will be pre-leased before construction is completed.”