Proposed Bids Total $1.9M for First Phase of Arnold Palmer Airport Terminal Expansion

Feb. 15—The Westmoreland County Airport Authority is weighing a potential cost of $1.9 million for the first phase of a proposed terminal expansion at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport.

The authority learned Tuesday that an apparent low bid of $1.78 million was submitted by Allegheny Construction Group of Bridgeville, for a general construction contract to demolish a hangar located next to the existing terminal and construct a replacement building for storing equipment farther from the terminal. The apparent low bid for a related electrical contract was submitted by ABS Building of McKeesport at a cost of $144,285.

Authority engineering consultant Scott Kunselman said he wants to review project funding sources before the board votes on the proposed construction contracts.

"We want to take some time to work on coordinating our funding options," he said. "We'll probably be coming back in the next month or so to recommend an award."

There were five bids received for the general contract and four bids for the electrical work, Kunselman said.

If all goes well, he said, construction of the equipment building could begin as early as this summer, followed by demolition of the hangar, which will clear space for the terminal addition.

The price tag for the entire terminal expansion is estimated at $23 million, with the authority responsible for raising a $2.1 million local share.

Other sources of funding for the project include $6.5 million from Pennsylvania's Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program, a combined $12.7 million from two pockets of Federal Aviation Administration funding, $1.5 million from passenger ticket fees and $100,000 from the state Bureau of Aviation.

Kunselman said the proposed expansion would add 22,000 square feet of space on each of the terminal's two floors. That essentially would double the size of the existing building, providing more room for the terminal's secure passenger holding area along with a lounge and a restaurant/snack shop.

The larger terminal also would have space for a second security checkpoint, so that the line of passengers "won't be backed up to the baggage claim anymore," Kunselman said.

He said the idea of operating a small casino in the expanded terminal has been dropped because it isn't consistent with requirements of the funding.

Survey to gauge flight demand

The airport authority is conducting an online survey through the end of February to gauge public interest in flight destinations and frequency from the airport in Unity.

Recent runway improvements, together with the proposed terminal expansion, are intended to make it easier for the airport to handle multiple flights from more than one commercial carrier.

Spirit Airlines has been the airport's sole carrier since 2011, but the schedule has been reduced to a single daily flight to and from Orlando after the airline dropped Fort Lauderdale as a destination in December.

In December, the airport served 9,384 Spirit passengers, down sharply from 19,446 passengers served during the same period in 2021. November's passenger total was 13,671 compared to 19,779 the prior year.

Authority Executive Director Gabe Monzo noted the remaining Orlando flights have been at about 70% capacity.

Regarding the survey, he said, "We're looking for feedback on where folks want to fly and how often they might use such service if it were available. All we're trying to do is position ourselves within the industry and be prepared to move in whatever direction we need to."

The survey can be found at palmerairport.com and also is available on social media outlets.

Jeff Himler is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jeff by email at [email protected] or via Twitter .

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