St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport (PIE) director Mark Sprague discussed the future of the organization at a Florida Economic Club gathering Wednesday evening at Voodoo Brewing Co. in St. Petersburg.
Founded in 2009, the Florida Economic Club helps connect business professionals and community leaders from Pinellas, Hillsborough and Sarasota counties.
Sprague began his official tenure as director in March. He previously served as deputy director and interim director at PIE.
Earlier this year, airport leaders announced that they have decided to rescope a large scale terminal improvement project. Sprague said that the organization is focusing on infrastructure enhancements and exploring conceptual designs for a terminal that will eventually accommodate 4.5 to 5 million passengers.
The original PIE was built in 1957.
Sprague said that the airport, at 14700 Terminal Blvd. #221, has changed over time due to partnerships with different airlines. However, he believes that “we’ve always done growth in a reactive type of way.” These improvements, he argued, do not “intertwine for the 2.8 million passengers that we serve today.”
Additionally, the current terminal can only serve about 3 million individuals.
Short-term, the PIE team will address a variety of “inefficiencies.” This will help modernize the airport. He said that the changes will include seating and wayfinding signage updates. Additionally, enhancements to the roofing and lighting system are planned.
Sprague added that airport leaders are investigating the best long-term strategies for building new infrastructure such as taxiways.
“If we can keep our current brick and mortar, we will,” he said. “If we can’t, we’re going to tear it down.”
Once the conceptual drawings are completed, Sprague and his team plan to work on a smaller scale project first. The first phase will be an approximately 40,000-square-foot expansion with four jet bridges.
PIE is also preparing to construct an approximately $60 million garage adjacent to the terminal. It will have over 2,000 spaces. Construction is expected to commence in January 2027 and the effort should be completed by spring of 2028.
“We’ve been having record-breaking passenger growth year after year for the past 10 to 15 years,” he explained. “So, one of the major complaints that we have is that we don’t have any parking.”
He added that the airport occupies approximately 2,000 acres of land. About 1,000 acres is actively used by PIE for operations. Currently, the organization works with a variety of tenants for lease rentals.
Sprague explained that there are two major pieces of undeveloped land adjacent to PIE.
The approximately 128-acre Airco site used to be a golf course. He said that PIE plans to develop about 32 acres for aeronautical use. This means that the tenant “has to be able to support the taxiways and the runways.” A section of the Airco property will also be available for non-aeronautical tenants, such as business parks, hotels and other companies that support aviation.
The airport also oversees the approximately 10-acre former Turtle Club site. Spague said that the PIE team will consider the best use cases for both parcels.
While PIE is owned and operated by Pinellas County, the organization does not receive any tax dollars. “We have to be 100% self-sufficient,” he explained. “We do that through user fees, airline charges, lease rentals and concessions.”
All projects are fully funded before any work commences. To help finance improvement efforts, Sprague said that PIE also receives federal and state grants.
He added that PIE’s partnership with Allegiant Airlines has been essential in the airport’s growth. A new five-year contract with the company was approved in September. To celebrate 20 years of the partnership, PIE will host an anniversary event Nov. 16 from 12 to 4 p.m. at the airport property.
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