Space Florida, the state’s arm for aerospace-related economic development, said Sept. 24 that it had closed on a $62.5 million credit facility with Bank of America to support construction of the Space Shuttle Atlantis exhibit at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Visitor Complex.

Delaware North Companies Parks and Resorts, which has operated the visitor center for NASA since 1995, will use the loan to complete construction on the $73 million exhibit hall that will house Atlantis. The new 8,400-square-meter attraction is slated to open summer 2013.

Under the financing agreement with Space Florida, a percentage of the revenue earned from KSC Visitor Complex concessions will be used to service the loan. “We are pleased that we were able to leverage our unique financing capabilities to construct this exciting exhibit,” Space Florida President Frank DiBello said in a statement.