Pinellas County commissioners approved construction of a four-story parking garage at St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport on Tuesday, a project intended to address growing demand at the busy facility.

The proposed garage would have approximately 2,000 spaces and replace the current Strawberry Lot next to the terminal, serving as economy parking. According to interim airport director Mark Sprague, 2025 has been the busiest year in the airport’s history, with about 2.6 million passengers through mid-December.

The project’s estimated $60 million cost would be funded through a combination of sources: roughly $6 million from an FDOT grant, nearly $30 million in airport reserves, and over $24 million from customer facility charges on rental cars. Sprague noted the airport would not need loans or bonds to finance the construction.

Commissioner Vince Nowicki questioned whether surface-level parking options had been fully considered before committing to construction costing approximately $40,000 per space and using one-third of airport reserves.

The design phase is expected to begin in early 2026.

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