UCLAbruins

Found this article, Raleigh and Dallas are also in the running to be the Netjets headquarter address, or at least be the center-point for growth.


Private company to expand outside Columbus
Saturday, November 3, 2007 3:37 AM
By Marla Matzer Rose


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
NetJets, the country's largest private-jet firm, is planning to expand and Columbus is only one of several cities courting the Warren Buffett-controlled company.

According to a report in the Orlando Sentinel yesterday, Orlando is competing with Raleigh, N.C., and Fort Worth, Texas, to land NetJets' expanding operations.
The report said attracting NetJets could create as many as 2,000 jobs, raising questions about whether other states also are trying to lure away some of the 1,500 jobs the company maintains at its operational headquarters in Columbus, which includes offices at both Port Columbus and Easton.
A spokeswoman for NetJets, which pioneered a fractional-ownership concept that works much like a time share, confirmed that the company is looking outside Columbus for possible expansion.
"As NetJets' business continues to grow and as we expand and add more employees and more aircraft, we also must add new infrastructure to maintain the highest standards of service and safety," read the statement released by spokeswoman Maryann Aarseth. "We are looking at adding new buildings in Columbus and perhaps outside the Columbus area as well."
NetJets built an 825,000-square-foot facility at Port Columbus in 1999. It leases land and some hangar space from the Columbus Regional Airport Authority.
David Whitaker, vice president of business development for the airport authority, said NetJets' lease runs through 2019. Its agreement also includes an option to lease additional land at Port Columbus.
Whitaker and representatives of the city and state economic development offices said they were aware of discussions with NetJets, but declined to comment further.
At its monthly meeting on Tuesday, the airport board held a closed-door session to discuss the "possible expansion" of an existing aviation tenant. Whitaker would not say whether NetJets was the topic of discussion.
Melissa Ament, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Development, said her office has "been in touch with NetJets" about the matter. She said she could give no other information on the nature and timing of the discussions.
"Job retention is an ongoing effort, and we are talking to them," said Michael Stevens, assistant development director for the city of Columbus. Stevens said his understanding of NetJets' search was consistent with the company's statement that it wasn't looking to leave Columbus.
The Sentinel said a host of public entities, coming together