10/02/2007
Blethen Maine Newspapers
The Portland Jetport is planning its largest expansion project in the airport's 40-year history.
The $60 million project -- to be funded in part by increased passenger fees -- will begin next May with the construction of a new five-story parking garage and continue the following year when work begins on expanding the terminal.
It will add 125,000 square feet to the terminal, almost doubling it in size. Plans call for adding five additional gates and more than doubling the number of security checkpoints. The project includes a $36 million, five-level garage that would have 1,039 spaces. Built of galvanized steel and precast concrete, it would replace a two-level, 570-space garage that was built beside the terminal in 1978.
The entire project is scheduled for completion by October 2010. Airport officials say the terminal expansion is long overdue and will ease overcrowding.
The airport served 1.6 million passengers in the fiscal year that ended June 30, an increase of more than 200,000 people over the previous year. In 10 of the last 12 months it has set all-time records for passenger volume.
Steve Hewins, vice president of travel for AAA Northern New England, said the jetport is benefiting from recent changes in the industry that have caused some airports to lose their regional monopoly on cheap air fares. He said he expects this "flattening" of fares is helping the jetport pull business away from Boston's Logan Airport and Manchester Airport in New Hampshire, and he expects the trend will continue.
The recent addition of two low-cost airlines, JetBlue and AirTran Airways, have fueled the airport's growth. The JetBlue service began in May 2006, and AirTran launched its first flights from Portland in June of this year. Both airlines now plan to offer nonstop daily service to Orlando, Fla., this winter.
But the expansion plan -- which will be funded with a revenue bond -- would still make financial sense even if one of those airlines pulls out of Portland, said Airport Manager Jeff Schultes.
The plan was put together before AirTran's arrival, Schultes said. He added that the region has several large companies whose employees travel frequently, and there are plenty of people in Maine with disposable income. "We have to take care of our customers," he said. "We don't have to worry that this airline may go, or that airline may go. We will find someone to take its place. This is a strong market."
The project will be funded in part by an additional $1.50 fee on each plane ticket, raising the passenger facility charge from $3 to $4.50, effective next April.
Also, the airlines will be leasing space they use, and there will be more shops and the addition of a small food court.
The planned five-level garage would be critical to allow the airport to work efficiently, as people need to park as close to the terminal as possible, explained Paul Bradbury, the airport's facilities and engineering manager. As he looked through his office window at the squat, two-story garage, he explained that the garage is too small for its location.
"That's what you call prime oceanfront property for an airport," he said. A sky bridge will connect the new garage to the expanded terminal. The current security screening area will be moved to the sky bridge, which will be 150 feet wide -- wider than the current screening area.
The airport on Oct. 15 will ask the City Council for $1 million to start designing the terminal. The money would come from the airport's reserve account. That account is generated from airport fees associated with parking, concessions, and other sources and now contains $6.5 million, according to Schultes. City councilors support the expansion.
If the airport in the next year and half sees a major downturn in passenger volume for unforeseen reasons, Schultes said, officials can cancel or postpone the project.
An expanded airport would eliminate the long line that develops many mornings at the security checkpoint area, Hewins said. "It's off-putting to businesses and people," he said. "It gives the impression of a second-rate operation." He added, "I've seen people's eyes open like a saucer when they see a snaking line 100 yards long."
Hewins several years ago served on a citizen advisory committee that helped develop the airport's long-range plan.
Several passengers interviewed Friday at the jetport said they're willing to pay an extra $1.50 per ticket to have a less-congested terminal.
Harro Jakel, chief executive officer with PanTim Wood Products in Portland, said a better airport would make the area more attractive for businesses. He said he goes on 20 business trips a year and flies out of Portland a third of the time. Improving the airport, he said, will lure more airlines to the airport and allow him to fly out of Portland more often.
Dan Mercer of Scarborough said he viewed the $1.50 fee as an investment that will attract more low-cost carriers.
"We'll end up with less expensive flights in the long run," he said.
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