THIS QUIET LITTLE beach resort on Florida's Gulf Coast panhandle is counting on the only new air carrier airport under construction in the US to help it grow into the state's next boom town. With Southwest Airlines signed on for at least eight daily flights, the community is hoping the Southwest Effect will bring plenty of new business to the region.

Northwest Florida-Panama City International, slated to open on May 18 with a 10,000-ft. main runway, is the only new publicly owned greenfield airline airport built in the US since 9/11. It is the centerpiece of the 75,000-acre West Bay Sector Plan, the largest master-planned development in the eastern part of the country. The project hugs the north shore of St. Andrews Bay, which empties into the Gulf of Mexico.

The airport property covers 4,000 acres of the site. Its first stage uses 1,330 of these acres. The land for the new airport was donated by The St. Joe Company, the second-largest landowner in Florida and the force behind the West Bay project. Jacksonville-based St. Joe owns 600,000 acres in the area, including the West Bay site, much of it in timber. It also is a major developer of commercial, industrial and residential projects in the region. West Bay itself will include industrial, commercial and retail space as well as housing, vacation and marina facilities, plus conservation set-asides totaling 41,000 acres.

"This is a transformative project," says Kevin Johnson, the company's VP-economic development. It has deepwater port access, nationwide road and rail connections and proximity to what Senior VP-External Affairs Jerry Ray describes as "an aerospace cluster" of seven military installations and research institutions. The Naval Surface Warfare Center in Panama City will use the new airport as a test site for security innovations it is developing.

The airport is owned by the Panama City-Bay County Airport and Industrial District, which functions as the airport authority. St. Joe and the authority have formed what Ray calls "a public-private partnership" to develop and market the airport. St. Joe has no members on the authority board, but "we work very closely together."

St. Joe is heavily involved in community efforts to bring airlines and destinations to the new airport and in late October announced a commitment by Southwest to fly at least eight daily roundtrips, two each to four destinations that reportedly include Baltimore and Nashville. The deal includes marketing support by regional tourism groups. In addition, St. Joe agreed to reimburse Southwest for any losses incurred during the first three years of service, with the airline repaying the developer from later profits. According to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing from St. Joe, the agreement may be terminated by the company if payments to Southwest exceed $14 million in the first year or $12 million in the second year. SWA may terminate the deal if revenues at the airport "are less than certain [agreed upon] minimum annual amounts."