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St. Pete-Clearwater International airport said it’s time to expand because its terminal was built to serve 2.5 million passengers and the demand is way beyond that now.
“We have experienced over 200 percent increase in passengers in the last 10 years,” Michele Routh with St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport said.
Routh said it may be small but it's consistently busy. It created a master plan in 2021 which looked at the next phases in planning. That next phase will address accommodations for 3.5 million passengers.
The $110 million expansion project will include more jet bridges, gates, expanding the baggage area along with consolidating Transportation Security Administration checkpoints.
“So we're going to have one TSA screening checkpoint then you'll have access to all concessions,” Routh said.
Mary Barnes said she visits the airport often and would like to see more options for guests.