BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — More details were revealed about a secretive project and its expected impact on the Space Coast at a special meeting of the Space Florida board of directors Wednesday. 

The name of the company developing the project has not been disclosed, but the $1.8 billion capital improvement project, code-named "Project Hinton," is expected to help usher in even more spaceflight in the near future and a huge investment and influx of jobs, Space Florida President and Chief Executive Rob Long said during a teleconference of the meeting.

It includes a high-volume manufacturing and assembly facility, with integration of heavy-lift hardware that will drastically increase payload mass and volume to orbit from the Space Coast, according to Howard Haug, Space Florida's executive vice president, treasurer and chief investment officer.

"Project Hinton" is being touted as a "global hub for interplanetary commerce," and it is expected to begin in January 2025 and take 18 months to two years to complete.

The company behind the project has forecasted it will create 600 jobs with an average salary of $93,000.

Space Florida on Wednesday unanimously approved grant negotiations with the Florida Department of Transportation to help lay the groundwork for the project.

The facility would be a boon for the local economy, including small businesses, which would see an influx of new customers.

As both a small business owner and the incoming chair of the Titusville Chamber of Commerce, those jobs really catch the attention of Amer Hatoum, the owner of Gear Up Surplus on Cheney Highway in Titusville.

Hatoum has run his shop of military surplus merchandise, tactical and survival gear and camping supplies since 2009 in a building his family has owned for generations.

That was about the same time as the Space Shuttle program was retiring and small businesses like his began to struggle after thousands of NASA and contractor employees were laid off.

“Seeing how it started my business, to keep my parents afloat, to me taking over the store, and seeing how it’s growing, it’s kind of a full-circle moment right now,” Hatoum said.

As thousands of jobs have returned to the area through commercial space, Hatoum's livelihood has continued to soar.

Many of his customers are space and aerospace workers who have moved to Titusville and north Brevard.

“We’re pro-business, being able to help our local businesses in the community," Hatoum said of the chamber. "And more jobs is obviously better.”

“We continue to grow, and we’re very thankful for that.”

Space Florida has not yet disclosed where the facility will be located on the Cape Canaveral spaceport, which is comprised of Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.