From an ephiphany came an airport. Until 2004, Connecticut-based businessman and former bond trader Steve Peet knew little about Branson, Mo., the Ozark Mountain recreational hub. After all, he says, “I live in the Northeast, and there was no easy way to get there, so why market it to people like me?”
That changed when Peet, then a passive investor in airport developer Aviation Facilities Company (AFCO), visited Branson to assess a stalled project. There, he discovered Branson’s diverse entertainment infrastructure, and that more than half its 8 million annual visitors travel more than 300 miles to get there. “I had an epiphany: This place needs an airport,” says Peet.