The town of Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, is moving toward a private airport at the former Sabana Seca Naval Base. Mayor Bernardo "Betito" Márquez García told Primera Hora that, based on talks with Sabana Seca Partners, LLC president Víctor González, expansion of the area that would become the runway would begin, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) permits are already in hand.
Márquez García estimated the initial private investment at $1 million, which could reach $15 million if the project becomes viable. He first tried to shape the idea in 2017, when it stayed at talks with González and then Economic Development and Commerce Department (DDEC) executive director Manuel Laboy Rivera, who took an interest but took no action.
Sabana Seca Partners, owner of the former base, holds about 300 cuerdas (a land measure of about 0.97 acre) in the "south track" near PR-22 and 1,200 cuerdas in the "north track," site of the old radar, for 1,500 cuerdas in total. A private runway for small planes will be built in the north track, entirely with private money.
The mayor met with Ports Authority executive director Norberto Negrón, who saw it favorably as an alternative for operations once improvements begin on the runway at Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport in Isla Grande, with potential to become a commercial runway. Crews are now building and widening the road to the old radar to meet the FAA permit.
No start date is set because of regulations. The mayor foresees jobs in transport services, aircraft maintenance, fuel and mechanics, and a link to a future aviation school in Toa Baja. He also looks toward Dorado, where Act 60 beneficiaries frequently use private planes.
Negrón and Ports Authority aviation director José Román declined to comment, saying the project is private and outside their jurisdiction.