Bolstered by the success of Spirit Airlines, officials at the Arnold Palmer Regional Airport will expand airport parking to accommodate the influx of travelers.

The Westmoreland County Airport Authority on Tuesday approved a motion to expand the parking lot at the Unity airport by 230 spaces to accommodate the expanding number of customers Spirit Airlines has brought to the terminal since debuting in February. The lot presently can hold about 900 vehicles, according to Edward Nasuti, the authority's engineer.

Spirit, which bills itself as an ultra-low cost-carrier, began service at Arnold Palmer by offering four flights per week to the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. In May, the airline added four flights per week to Myrtle Beach, S.C.

The $824,909 project will be completed by Derry Construction Co.

The Federal Aviation Administration will fund 95 percent of the project's cost. The state Bureau of Aviation will pay for 2.5 percent of the project, and the airport authority will pay the remaining 2.5 percent.

Nasuti said the parking lot will be constructed in the grass field near the airport's main entrance. He added that the project has been planned for more than two decades.

"We put the fill for the parking lot in 1985 when we expanded the runway," Nasuti said. "Until Spirit came in, we didn't have the need (to expand)."