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JANUARY 19, 2023
A
Joint Workshop Meeting
Airports Special Management Committee, was held on this date in the Training and Conference Center at
Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW), with the following members present:
Absent
Absent
Ray Sandelli
AIRPORTS SPECIAL MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
Absent
Randy Krise
Robbie Roepstorff
REGIONAL MEMBERS:
Absent
Absent
The Chairman called the meeting to order at 10:08 a.m.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Executive Director Ben Sigel introduced the item stating the Workshop was to review the Capital Improvement
Plan (CIP), which has been updated since the last Workshop which was held more than a year ago. He stated he
would like to discuss several projects on the Capital Improvement Plan and turned over the meeting to Senior
PRESENTATION
Topic:
Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) UPDATE
Presented by:
DISCUSSION
Senior Deputy Executive Director of Capital Programs and Strategic Planning Mark Fisher stated that similar to
prior years he would like to discuss the Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) with the Board to get their feedback
and input. Staff will incorporate the CIP project cost into the preparation of the FY23/24 proposed budget that
will be presented to the Board later this year. He stated today’s Workshop would touch on Southwest Florida
International Airport’s (RSW) current and future passenger counts and projections, some of the Staff
recommended projects that will be brought back as agenda items in the upcoming fiscal year and an overview of
the CIP for both RSW and Paige Filed airports. Mr. Fisher than stated that Deputy Executive Director of
Administration Brian McGonagle would review the different funding options available for the CIP projects. Mr.
PowerPoint Presentation
regarding the Capital Improvement Plan. He stated that looking
at the next 20 years Staff feels comfortable with the current forecast based on current information and figures.
Those forecasts projected a little over 5 million enplanements which equates to 10 million total passengers for
calendar year 2022. However, RSW surpassed those projections by coming in at 5.1 million enplanements.
Prior to 2026 it has been projected there will be close to 6 million enplanements for a total of 12 million
passengers arriving and departing from RSW. Mr. Fisher went on to say the CIP is greatly dependent upon
grants from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and the
Transportation Security Administration (TSA), as well as other agencies and fees such as passenger facility
(PFC) and customer facility charge (CFC) revenues.
•
Need to Meet Regulatory Requirements
•
•
Enhance the Safety/Security of Airport Operations
•
Leverages Use of Grant Dollars/Other Funding
•
Adds Capacity/Level of Service
•
Better Passenger/Customer Experience
•
Enhances Airport Business Model/Revenues
Mr. Fisher presented a project description sheet with overall project cost for the different projects at RSW with
a total of $1.5 billion. He stated that being able to afford that overall number has influence on some of the Staff
recommendations being brought before the Board.
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Mr. Fisher then presented a project description sheet with overall project cost for the different projects at Page
Field (FMY) with a total of approximately $80 million. The projects at both airports brings the total Lee County
Port Authority CIP to more than $1.6 billion.
There are approximately $392 million worth of projects that are currently underway, which are:
•
RSW Terminal Expansion 1 – Checkpoint/Concessions Construction
•
RSW Master Plan Update (Continued)
•
RSW Realign/Rehab Chamberlin Parkway
•
FMY South Quad Hangers and Ramp
$331M
$2M
$20M
$39M
Mr. Fisher stated the Terminal Expansion –Phase 1 with checkpoint and concessions consolidation is currently
under construction but running behind schedule with approximately 2 years remaining. Staff is actively working
with the Construction Manager and General Contractor from Manhattan Construction Company on a recovery
plan in order to have the new checkpoint up and running before Thanksgiving of 2024. Staff will be bringing a
final draft of the RSW Master Plan update that has been ongoing for approximately 2 years back to the Board in
June of this year and will be requesting Board approval to transmit the document to the FAA and FDOT for
approval.
Concourse E was approved by the Board in May of 2022. The target identified in the Master Plan was to design
a facility that could handle peak hour traffic in March of 2036, which equates to facilities that will be needed to
support 14 additional gates. The target construction of Concourse E is to be completed in 2027, which will
allow for 9 years of peak month capacity before additional airline gates are forecast to be needed. Some of the
design objectives were:
•
Satisfy March 2026 Demand
•
Lowest Possible Cost While Meeting Current Industry Standards For Passenger Experience/Level Of
Service
•
Seamlessly Blend With Existing Terminal Operations and Architecture
The new terminal will include a 5,000 -7,000 foot VIP lounge and connectivity between all concourses for
anyone using any of the TSA checkpoints and will be able access all gates.
The project is now at the 30 percent design milestone and early analysis has determined some higher than
expected costs on the project. One of these costs is the airside component including: taxiways, aircraft parking
ramps and fueling systems that would be needed to support the ultimate 19 gate concourse layout, which is
driven by FAA requirements.
The second is the main terminal-departures second level floor plan which needs additional terminal footprint to
support the initial 14 and ultimately 19 gates for Concourse E. The additional space is driven by function and
needs to be large enough to accommodate the space needed for TSA checkpoint lanes, airline ticket counters,
ticket lobby and ADA ramps leading from the terminal level to both Concourse E and Concourse D.
Mr. Fisher stated the same applies to the main terminal-arrivals first level floor plan, which also needs to be
larger than expected in order to accommodate the bag claim devices, airline bag makeup units and the outbound
TSA bag system.
•
Main Terminal and Concourse Length And Width Driven by Function
•
90-Feet Wide (Prior and Current Industry Standards)
•
Extra Square Footage = Extra Cost
•
Planned Level of Service (LOS) =
Holdrooms = 23 Percent More Than Existing
Restrooms = 55 Percent More Than Existing
Concessions = 109 Percent More Than Existing
He went on to say the modeling and analysis shows that in order for the terminal to function as planned, there
needs to be a bigger main terminal footprint with an Early Order of Magnitude (EOM) cost estimate of $620
million with a 30 percent design cost estimate of $778 million that would include:
•
Design Evolution
•
Terminal Building Footprint Needs to Support Ultimate 19 Gates
•
Chiller Building Expansion
•
Required Airside Pavement
•
3 Pedestrian Bridges
•
Higher-Cost Escalation Based on Projected Market
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Mr. Fisher stated with supply chain issues, worker shortages and material costs equals a higher projected cost
escalation through the term of the construction, which equates to $150 million more in the cost estimate.
Concourse E – Recommended Revised Phasing
Phase One
•
•
+8 Gates
•
Phase Two
•
•
+6 Gates
•
Concourse E – Next Steps for Phased Design and Construction:
Phase One
•
•
8 Gates
Phase Two
•
•
6 Gates
Commissioner Hamman asked what the passenger experience might look like during the construction process of
the terminal expansion as well as the construction of Concourse E. Mr. Fisher stated during the construction
there will be detours through the construction area for passengers, just as there are at many other airports across
the country. The areas will be safe, they just will not look pretty. He stated that when the Terminal Expansion
Project is done, Concourse E will be off to the side so passengers should not have much of an inconvenience
other that the roadway system as it will be extended as part of Concourse E. Additionally, passengers that are in
their vehicles traveling to the airport will experience detours during the expansion.
RSW Rental Car Operation
•
Service Area – Where rental car agencies store vehicles or do minor vehicle repairs
•
Customer Building – Where the customer rents a vehicle
•
Ready/Return Area – Clean and fueled vehicles ready for customer pick up
•
Quick Turnaround Area (QTA) – Where retuned vehicles are washed and fueled for the next customer
Mr. Fisher reviewed a map of the existing service location for the rental car service area stating it is not the best
place for the rental car companies since they have to shuttle all their vehicles from the north side to the south
side of the airport costing them time, shuttle drivers, fuel and mileage. Additionally, Mr. Fisher stated the rental
car service area it is not in the best location for the Port Authority either and a vehicle service yard does not fit
with the vision of Skyplex. Staff is proposing to move the service area to the south side of the runway closer to
the main terminal operations and the rental car operations in the garage, saving the rental car agencies a lot of
time and money which translates into better service for the passengers. Staff is also proposing an expansion of
ready return and QTA areas behind the garage. This expansion would require taking 1,450 parking spaces from
the long-term parking lot. To offset the loss of parking spaces, Staff is proposing to add another level to the
parking garage which would add the lost 1,450 spaces.
The Early Order of Magnitude (EOM) project cost is estimated to be $210 million with funding coming from:
•
100 Percent Customer Facility Charge (CFC)
•
Estimated CFC = $4-$5 Per Transaction Day (A User Fee Charged to Arriving Passengers Added to
the Rental Car Contract)
•
Estimated CFC Collection Period = 2023 to 2043 (Estimated)
The next steps would be to prepare a draft CFC ordinance in order to:
•
Relocation of Service Area
•
Expansion of the Ready/Return QTA
•
Expansion of the Garage
•
Future Potential Projects (Flex Surface Lot and Customer Building Expansion)
Once the Board approves a CFC ordinance at a Public Hearing, Staff can begin to collect CFC’s. Staff would
then bring the design contracts to the Board for approval. The project completion is planned for 2028. There
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was discussion about rental cars and who is renting them. Executive Director Ben Sigel said typically it would
be passengers arriving at the airport. He said anyone local who rents a car from the airport can sign a waiver
stating they did not come through the airport and then they would not have to pay the fee. He said there are
provisions in the rental agreement for that. Only passengers arriving at the airport will be assessed the fee.
Airport Special Management Committee member Randy Krise asked if passengers were currently being
charged a CFC fee. Mr. Sigel stated there are no CFC fees currently being collected. However, there was a CFC
fee being charged during the construction of the Midfield Terminal complex. Once all the revenue was collected
that was needed to pay the debt, the fee was discontinued. Mr. Sigel stated the upcoming fee for the rental car
relocation and garage expansion will not be a forever fee; instead it will be used to leverage the revenue needed
to pay off the debt. The fee will be discontinued once the debt is paid off.
Public Safety Building - The Board has selected a firm to design a new Public Safety building, which will be
occupied by the Lee County Port Authority Police Department. Staff will be bringing a design contract before
the Board at a future meeting for approval.
Runway Rehab Project - A consultant has been selected for the runway rehab project to design the pavement for
runway 6/24. Staff will be working to bring phase design contracts before the Board at a future meeting for
approval.
Federal Inspection Station Upgrades - Staff has been working with US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to
upgrade the current Federal Inspection Station (FIS). The improvements are planned to be split into two
projects. Project One will upgrade security systems and help CBP better process visitors. Since the FIS is the
first impression of Southwest Florida for arriving international guests, Project Two will refresh the FIS area
with new restrooms, carpet, technologies and fixtures to make for a more pleasant passenger experience.
Baggage System Upgrade - An upgraded outbound automated baggage handling system that screens all bags
before they are loaded onto a new plane. New Concourse E will tie into the existing system and add overall
system capacity. However, additional improvements and upgraded technology are still needed to make it a
better, faster, stronger system, which is critical for the airport.
Maintenance Expansion - There are plans to start a new consolidated facility that will connect the two main
maintenance areas on the north side of the airport, which will help to consolidate the many maintenance
functions around the airport into one location.
Passenger Experience Projects - There are plans to upgrade some of the existing concourse seating as well as
refurbish the restrooms that are not included in the existing projects in order to bring them up-to-date and match
the new facility for a better passenger experience.
PowerPoint Presentation
regarding
funding for the different projects at RSW stating, there is a solid business plan in place. The funding plans are
coming from different sources such as the FAA, FDOT, PFC, PAYGO, CFC, grants and general airport revenue
bonds (GARB).
Mr. McGonagle went on to review the funding for Page Field (FMY) stating the funding sources that will be
used are the FAA and FDOT.
ADJOURN:
The Chairman adjourned the meeting at 10:38 a.m.
By: ________________________________
___________________________________________
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