WEST BAY — In 20 years, the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport may look completely different.
It took nearly two years to plan for the next 20 at the four-year-old airport, but officials are expected to wrap up the ongoing master planning process by the end of this summer.
The plan will provide airport staff with five-, 10- and 20-year planning horizons, with improvement projects carried out in phases as passenger activity increases.
“As we grow, we use those passenger activity levels as our threshold rather than time,” said Airport Director Parker McClellan. “If you reach the time first, but you don’t have the activity, then you don’t build it. ... If we all of a sudden went from 415,000 to 800,000 passengers, we know what improvements we need to make.”
The plan would trigger three levels of projects as activity levels reach 515,000, 705,000 and 875,000 passengers per year.
“We’ll build based on demand; we’ll grow based on demand,” McClellan said. “I think the thing to keep in mind is that it’s a planning tool. It’s not a Bible; it’s a guide.”
What’s coming
Included in the document is a $33.6 million terminal growth plan to be completed in three phases, with expansion of the security checkpoint and outbound baggage claims positioned as the highest priority projects and likely will occur within the next five years.
The first phase of expansion also includes additional space for passenger hold rooms and prioritizes enlarging the airport’s concourse to allow for more concessions space and help drive non-aviation revenue.
Also still on the radar is the construction of a new crosswind runway, a project board members deferred because of funding issues earlier this year.
A crosswind runway is needed to provide better wind coverage for smaller aircraft. The airport’s current runway does not meet the FAA’s wind coverage requirement for smaller, general aviation aircraft.
“We’re talking to the state about some different funding opportunities,” McClellan said. “We’re not really at a point where we have any definite plans yet.”
Moving forward, McClellan said staff will be recommending a longer crosswind runway than was originally proposed to allow for use by larger planes.
Overall, McClellan said the master plan will provide staff with the “building blocks” for smart growth over the next two decades. A master plan also is needed for airports to be eligible to receive funding for improvement projects from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)and Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), which help fund the master planning process.
“With the master plan, we’re laying the building blocks out for the future,” McClellan said. “That’s one of the things our board feels very strongly about is making sure we have a good foundation for the future.”
In the coming week, the master plan will head to FDOT and the FAA for approval, and it will be presented in a final public meeting before the Airport Authority considers adoption this fall.