SRQ Airport Approves $72 Million Expansion Project

Mar. 6—MANATEE — A major expansion of Sarasota Bradenton International Airport has been cleared for take off.

The Sarasota Manatee Airport Authority approved a $71.5 million contract on Monday for the construction of a ground boarding facility and expansion of the existing concourse.

Under the contract with DeAngelis Diamond-Magnum Builders, excavation and compacting for footers would start in May and the vertical construction of the ground-level facility would begin in August.

The ground-level terminal would add five new passenger gates.

The project would also expand the airport's central energy plant.

Substantial completion is required by Dec. 23, 2024, and $71.5 million is the guaranteed maximum price.

What will SRQ upgrades mean for passengers?

In recent years, SRQ has become the nation's fastest-growing airport, regularly setting records for passenger traffic.

The contract approved Monday is intended to expand the existing hold room capacity, increase concessions areas, improve efficiency of the arrival/departure gate areas, install an additional escalator system, and evaluate and upgrade power and utilities.

The new ground-loading concourse would be constructed on the east side of the terminal.

The planned improvements are designed to maintain the level of service and passenger experience while accommodating sharply increased traffic through the airport. SRQ has always prided itself on being a "boutique" airport, providing superior convenience and comfort to travelers.

Designs for the ground-level facility show that it would have a two-story panoramic view of airport operations, five passenger gates and five places for airliners to load and off-load passengers. It is designed to blend with the existing terminal.

The design, first shown publicly a year ago, shows airy, well-lit spaces complete with concessions and restrooms that would seamlessly merge with the possible addition of another concourse in the future.

Rick Piccolo, the airport's president and CEO, first publicly proposed adding the ground-level passenger facility in May 2021 as a way of managing rapid passenger growth.

"Just about every airline has expressed some interest in the ground-level transportation facility. Some airlines have said they would take the whole thing tomorrow if you'd let me," Piccolo previously said.

Record growth

SRQ is now served by 11 airlines providing service to over 50 nonstop destinations.

For the 12 months ending in January, the airport served 3,923,034 passengers — a 17.5% increase compared to the same period a year earlier.

So, how much has passenger traffic grown at SRQ? It has nearly doubled in just a couple of years.

In 2021, SRQ finally broke the existing passenger record of 2,010,304 set in 1990.

A parking challenge

Not included in the contract approved Monday is a possible new airport parking garage.

In February, the airport authority selected a company to study the parking situation.

The study would recommend where a parking garage might be built. Among the possible locations: the short-term parking lot, the long-term parking lot or elsewhere.

Airport officials have increased total availability from 2,439 parking spaces to 4,428 spaces. The airport authority also raised parking fees to encourage more use of long-term parking.

The most significant change was for the short-term parking lot. Fees increased from a daily maximum of $19 a day to $25 a day.

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