Miami-Dade Aviation Department held a groundbreaking ceremony last week to celebrate the beginning of Miami International Airport’s Central Base Modification and Expansion Project.
The project will see the airport upgrade 34.1 acres of asphalt and concrete pavement originally built in the 1960s that is now used for aircraft parking and movement near Miami’s Concourse D.
The rehabilitated space, due for completion by December 2022, will better support larger aircraft, maximize aircraft parking locations, improve the area’s stormwater and lighting, and pave the way for passenger growth at the airport.
“This is the first of many groundbreakings we will be hosting in the coming months and years, as we move forward with our new capital improvement program,” said Lester Sola, Miami International director and CEO.
“MIA grew by one million passengers in 2018 and is on track for another record-breaking year in 2019, which makes modernization projects like the Central Base renovation all the more essential to accommodating our growth and maximizing our efficiency.”
The Central Base project has a construction cost of US$76.2m – 75% of this is being funded by the FAA, and 50% of the remaining cost is being funded by the Florida Department of Transportation.
The Central Base gate is part of the airport’s US$5bn, airport-wide capital improvement program, which will enable Miami International to serve a projected 77 million travelers and more than four million tons of freight projected by the year 2040.