Gene Conrad, Leader in Aviation, Transitions Out of Role as CFDC Chair
Gene Conrad has served in various leadership roles with the Central Florida Development Council for 6 years now. He led the CFDC Board as the 2023|2024 Chair this past year. Conrad’s impeccable leadership and commitment to the organization is more than deserving of celebration and recognition.
In his time with the CFDC, Conrad has helped with economic development and shared his expertise in aviation, while strengthening relationships and building new ones.
The former director of Lakeland Linder International Airport and current President & CEO of the Aerospace Center for Excellence (ACE) and SUN ‘n FUN Aerospace Expo moved up the ranks during his years of service. He has been secretary, treasurer, vice chair and chair of the board, and led the Aviation Committee.
“I was Lakeland-centric since I moved here in 2010. I know a lot of people; I went through Leadership Lakeland, Leadership Polk,” Conrad said. “But I’ve built a larger network of people in the business community through this countywide organization. The new network of people help in my day-to-day job. They help me understand the dynamics and minutiae of the way things work here.”
CFDC Appreciation for Conrad
CFDC President & CEO Sean Malott said Conrad is a leader in the community with big visions.
“I look at him as someone who has created a big impact in the aviation community in Polk County by his involvement- initially at Lakeland Linder and now at ACE. He has created a path for a thriving aviation and aerospace community to take shape.”
Now, “he has a whole new platform to reach even higher and support aviation in Lakeland, the county, and really in the region, state and nation. Sun ’n’ Fun is a leader of what’s next in aviation,” Malott commented further.
Conrad will remain on the board as Immediate Past Chair, and someone Malott will continue to look to for advice. “He’s a good person to bounce ideas off of. His business mind continues to look for possibilities.”
The Future of Polk County
The future has never been brighter for Polk County, Conrad said.
“I have been here almost 15 years. I remember what things were like when I drove here in 2010, the angst people were feeling coming out of the Great Recession,” he said. “Fast forward to now and we’re wondering, ‘How are we going to deal with all this growth?’ It stresses the infrastructure, the system. How do we manage it?”
Economic development in the form of new businesses and industry, along with capital investment, also provides challenges, Conrad said. “Someone recently commented, ‘I remember being here and there were so many orange groves.’ I appreciate those comments, that time, but things have changed drastically. We have to embrace growth because we don’t have a choice, but we need to be smart, too. Housing, warehouses – they all tax our infrastructure. These are challenges for our politicians, community leaders, economic development councils and more.”
Aviation Opportunities
‘Amazing’ is the word Conrad uses to describe aviation – and its future – in Polk County.
“People are paying attention. In 2010, no one was paying attention to aviation. Now, the development that’s occurred at the Lakeland, Bartow, Winter Haven and Lake Wales airports has been phenomenal. The economic impact of those four airports is $1.9B.”
When he first moved to Polk County and started networking as Lakeland’s airport director, people told him the airport was wasting its time trying to recruit a commercial air service here. “Now we have commercial service again (Avelo Airlines) and people are paying attention. We have Amazon, NOAA’s Hurricane Hunters and partnerships.”
Polk’s other airports are prospering as well, and planning for the future, he said. “That’s a result of the efforts of all the people leading the facilities, but also the natural growth of the area and people moving here.”
Cultivating the Future of Aviation
Everybody knows SUN ‘n FUN for the Fly-In, but not everyone knows ACE, whose goal is to “engage, educate and accelerate the next generation of aerospace professionals,” according to its slogan. “The net proceeds of the Fly-In are used to support our year-round efforts in programming,” Conrad said.
Rick Garcia, president of Gulf Coast Avionics, founded the Central Florida Aerospace Academy in 2007 in partnership with Polk County Public Schools. Located on SUN ‘n FUN’s campus, CFAA started the move to capture the attention of youth early, showcasing careers in aviation from airplane mechanic to pilot.
“The launch of the school paved the way for everything occurring now,” Conrad said.
In addition to the high school, which now has been replicated at Winter Haven Airport, students have access to other programs, including the Skylab Innovation Center, which offers interactive learning spaces for STEM and aerospace education, and story time in the Florida Air Museum.
“We continue to develop new programs to capture our youth from cradle to cockpit. We need to get them as early as possible, he said.
Filling the Gaps
Conrad and others are working to fill in the gaps that still exist in the Polk aviation sector. “In five to 10 years, we may have an aviation charter school to feed CFAA. That’s a big element for us and part of our strategic plan.”
There are also discussions about building an ACE facility and brick and mortar high school at Winter Haven airport to support the programs there. The plan includes working with Polk County Public Schools and a benefactor.
Then there are extra-curricular activities like the Lakeland Aero Club to develop high school students’ interest in aviation careers.
“This does not exist anywhere else. It’s special. We are all the caretakers and we’ve done a lot,” Conrad said. “Programs have matured. We have a lot in front of us and there are many opportunities to impact the lives of students or to at least open their eyes to what’s available. You can be a pilot, an air traffic controller, a mechanic. We want you to stay in Polk County. We have jobs here for these professions. It is in our best interest to support this and provide these opportunities.”
Collaboration Opportunities
Conrad said there are always opportunities for collaboration. But he stresses one thing.
“Collaboration is great, but if you’re going to collaborate, you’ve got to be able to communicate,” he said. “That’s county to municipality, municipality to the business community, economic development agency to economic development agency – we all must communicate with one another.”
Getting away from Zoom meetings that became so popular during the pandemic is one part of that, Conrad said. “We need to get out of our comfort zones. We need to meet in person and break bread, talk and network – get to know each other. That’s how we get better collectively. Not everyone is going to agree, but if you have a better understanding of where people are coming from, it makes it easier for everyone.”
Polk County- Florida’s Best Place for Business
The aviation & aerospace industry is one of the top lead sectors for CFDC. Companies in this sector are looking to be a part of Polk’s growing ecosystem for this high-skill sector. Polk County’s topflight infrastructure is surrounded by acres of developable land available for aviation and non-aviation purposes.
At the end of the day, he said, “It’s a great time to be in Polk County with our exceptional quality of life, robust aviation-related talent pipeline and business friendly climate.”
