St. Pete, Miami, Orlando Airports To Get $44M For Upgrades

ST. PETE, FL — St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport is among more than 100 airports across the country receiving a combined $970 million in federal funding to make terminal improvements, the Transportation Department said Thursday.

The $6 million grant to the St. Pete-area airport will fund a terminal renovation and expansion project, which consists of adding two new gates, consolidating TSA checkpoints, enlarging passenger hold rooms, increasing baggage make‐up capacity, and adding escalators and elevators, a statement said.

Several other Florida airports received grants through the program:

Miami International Airport: The $12 million award funds the eligible portion of the rehabilitation of the airport's existing Automated People Mover connecting Lower Concourse E to the Concourse E‐Satellite.

Miami International Airport: A separate $15 million grant pays a portion of the design phase for the modernization and redevelopment ofthe airport's Central Terminal and Concourses E and F.

Orlando Sanford International Airport: A $1 million award funds a portion of the rehabilitation of the West Terminal corridor, increasing the passenger waiting area and ADA accommodations.

The airport terminal funding, provided under bipartisan infrastructure legislation passed in late 2021, will be distributed to 114 airports in 44 states and three territories for terminal projects that improve passenger experience, lower the cost of travel and create competitive jobs.

Projects vary from those creating new baggage systems to enlarging security checkpoints to expanding gate capacity, and modernizing terminals and ground transportation, according to the announcement by the Transportation Department.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the improvements “will make it easier for passengers to get to and through airports, create jobs, and increase safety for all.”

The awards are on top of the nearly $2 billion for airport terminals announced by the Transportation Department over the past two years. Most of those terminal projects are under construction.

The funding comes from the Airport Terminal Program, one of three aviation programs created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.