Clay County Commissioner Scolds Green Cove for Ignoring Runway Safety Concerns
Renninger Says Reynolds Air Park Really Is an 'Airport'
“If it’s a safety issue for a public airport, tell me why it wouldn’t be a safety issue for a private airport.”—Clay County Commissioner Jim Renninger
The City of Green Cove Springs doesn’t dispute that aircraft fly in and out of Reynolds Air Park. However, in defending a decision to approve an apartment complex in line with the runway, city leaders insist that aviation activities there are “private,” so a hazard analysis is not mandatory.
County Commissioner Jim Renninger was interviewed about the lawsuit that Pegasus Technologies—the lone tenant at Reynolds Air Park—filed against Green Cove after the city annexed the parcel in question from the county and rezoned it for apartments.
Renninger, a retired Navy aviator, disputed Green Cove’s assertion that a private airport, like the one at Reynolds, is not really an airport under the law.
“Well, that’s not true. They can contend anything they want. The FAA defines airports, and they are defined as any structure where aircraft take off and land. So it is an airport,” Renninger said.
“The real issue is runway safety zones…I don’t care if airplanes take off from a public airport or a private airport. If it’s a safety issue for a public airport, tell me why it wouldn’t be a safety issue for a private airport. It’s all the same.”
Renninger is point man for the commission as the county develops “airport protection zoning regulations” as mandated by the state of Florida in 2018. The county began formulating the regs because an RV park had been proposed adjacent to Haller Air Park, a fly-in community off Highway 17 en route to Palatka.
“We are developing land development codes to protect both airports and land owners around airports. Our primary goal is the safety of everybody—the aircraft, the aircraft operator and anything on the ground,” he said. “Today, we don’t have robust development code around airports. Airport operations don’t stop at the property line.”
As small as it is—smaller than the operation at Reynolds—Haller is an airport, Renninger said. And he agrees with Pegasus’ argument that the proposed apartments could pose a hazard to public safety.
Pegasus and its landlord, Reynolds Industrial Park itself, are asking a Florida state court to overturn the city’s approval for the apartments. Among other things, they are arguing that Green Cove can’t make that kind of decision without first developing its own airport zoning regulations addressing any hazards.
City officials and the city’s hired lawyers have insisted that a private airport is not an “airport” as defined by the state of Florida. The problem with that argument may be that state law has no definition for “private airport,” as the city’s lawyers acknowleged in a recent pleading in connection with the suit. Nor does the state differentiate between or even mention public or private airports in the section of the law mandating hazard zoning, the city admitted.
State Definition of Airport
“Airport” means any area of land or water designed and set aside for the landing and taking off of aircraft and used or to be used in the interest of the public for such purpose.
Since there is no disputing that aircraft regularly land and take off at Reynolds, the case now before Circuit Court Judge Don Lester may turn on the interpretation of used or to be used in the interest of the public for such a purpose.
During a recent hearing, Attorney Barry Davidson was before Lester representing Reynolds Industrial Park. “I’ll put it this way,” Davidson told the judge. “If the City of Green Cove Springs had done its duty under 333 (the Florida statute) as regards airport hazards, we would not be here.”
In a pretrial deposition, lawyers for Pegasus managed to coax City Planning Director Michael Daniels into partially admitting a future public purpose. Daniels acknowleged that the City’s Comprehensive Plan envisioned aviation related companies and even an aviation education facility as future uses at Reynolds.
The lawsuit described in this story is one of three filed by Pegasus against Green Cove. Another is in abeyance in the same circuit court, while the third, closed without a finding, was before the state Division of Administrative Hearings.
M. Scott Thomas, a lawyer for Pegasus, made an argument to the Hearings Board that hinted at Pegasus’s reputation as an entity controlled by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. Thomas wrote:
While the Reynolds Airpark is not a “military installation” as defined in Florida statutes (and as commonly understood), it is an aircraft technology contractor and operator with extensive avionic experience that contracts with governmental entities on often sensitive technologically-advanced matters.
Though he was making a different point at the time, Thomas's argument begs the question of whether national defense—the reason Pegasus exists—qualifies as being “in the interest of the public” for the purposes of the state definition of “airport.”
During the public hearing in June 2022 leading up to the annexation and rezoning of the 14-acre parcel for apartments, Green Cove city councilors volunteered robust praise for Pegasus even as they were about to vote against it.
Ed Gaw: “This city is grateful for every one of the families that either works there or lives close within the city of Green Cove Springs. Your contributions are too many to count.”
Thomas Smith: “I'd like to echo Mr. Gaw's sentiment about our appreciation for Pegasus and what you do. Huge supporter. I don't even know what you do. I have an inkling that you guys do what you do, and you're good at it.”
Stephen Kelley: “As it's 38 years employing as many people as y'all have employed is quite a big accomplishment. And I know what contribution that has been to the city and to our country, as well, too, in your line of work.”
Thomas Smith: “First off, looking at you sitting here, I'm grateful that you're here. I'm grateful for what you all do. Not only for our town, but for our country... I would be remiss if I did not say thank you for what you do, for what you continue to do. There are a lot of unsung heroes sitting in our audience and we're…we're grateful.”
Matt Johnson: Well, I'm gonna jump on the band wagon and say I love Pegasus. I really do. We all do. We appreciate all you do. We know people who work for you and all that and great Americans—great service to our nation.
Attorney Thomas was asked whether these testimonials were an acknowledgement by city leaders that Pegasus Technologies serves a public purpose and sufficiently so to satisfy the state definition. Would he make the argument at trial?
“I don’t comment on litigation. Maybe, when it’s all over,” Thomas said.
The author is a career newspaper reporter and editor who covered federal and state courts. He was former editor of New Hampshire Sunday News. Nowadays, he spends most of his time writing about issues affecting boats and boating.
Previous Stories on Pegasus V. Green Cove
Green Cove Crosses a Shadowy Aviation Outfit, Faces Financial Consequences
25 Years Ago, a Spy Plane Nosedived Into a Florida Houseboat
'Black Hawk Down' Pilot Speaks for Pegasus in Lead-Up To Legal Battle (Videos)
Green Cove Strikes Back, Kicks Reynolds in the Pocketbook
One Councilor Voted Against the Controversial Green Cove Apartment Plan. Here's Why
Pegasus Lawyer: Green Cove Bent Its Rules To Do Virginia Hall a Favor
We will never know all that Pegasus has contributed to our nations security.