Oct. 2—PITTSTON TWP. — The airport terminal is headed for expansion.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport officials want to expand the 130,000-square-foot terminal by 9,000 to 10,000 square feet, Engineering Director Stephen Mykulyn said.
The expansion to the terminal's second floor would add space for social distancing in passenger lines in case of future pandemics and for greeting arriving passengers. The ground floor would house equipment such as luggage carriers.
"Right now, we just have a small area that's at the top of the escalators (to the second floor)," Mykulyn said.
The estimated cost is $16 million to $17 million. The terminal opened in May 2006 and cost $35.5 million as part of an $80 million airport upgrade. This would be the first major expansion.
Mykulyn pointed out the greeting area was much larger before the airport moved the security checkpoint back toward the escalators. The airport did that to put its main restaurant, Lucky's Craft Food & Drink, a Dunkin' and a small newsstand beyond the checkpoint so passengers waiting for planes could arrive early, relax and have something to eat.
The board hired McFarland-Johnson, Inc., of Binghamton, N.Y., in April to design the project. The design should take about a year, Mykulyn said. The airport is paying McFarland-Johnson $1,296,605 with COVID-19 relief money.
The airport isn't guaranteed to get the federal money necessary to build. Mykulyn said the airport must compete for money available under the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Success will mean the federal government paying 95% with the state and airport splitting the other 5%, he said. That would leave the airport share between $400,000 and $425,000.
The earliest construction could start is 2025, assuming Federal Aviation Administration approvals come smoothly, Mykulyn said.
Airport board Chairman Tim McGinley said the expansion makes sense because airport passengers want to feel safe.
"If we can make the facility safer and more customer accommodating, that's a positive thing for the airport," McGinley said.
___
(c)2023 The Times-Tribune (Scranton, Pa.)
Visit The Times-Tribune (Scranton, Pa.) at thetimes-tribune.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
