Car rentals relocated, new parking system on the way at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport

For the first time, paid parking will be introduced at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport — although plenty of free spaces will remain.

A new ticketing system for a preferred parking lot closest to the terminal at the Unity airport could be in place early next year, said Gabe Monzo, executive director of the Westmoreland County Airport Authority. Travelers parking overnight in those 250 spaces would be charged $10 a day. There will be no charge for parking there during the day, to patronize DeNunzio’s Italian Chophouse or conduct other business at the terminal, Monzo said.

Free overnight parking will continue to be offered in lots farther from the terminal, Monzo stressed. “We have a thousand free spots,” he said.

Those who park in the closest lot will receive a ticket through an access control system to be installed by Signature Control Systems, under a $97,515 contract approved through a state bidding program.

The authority discussed the new parking system in March, but priorities shifted when the arrival of the covid-19 pandemic triggered a sharp drop in flight bookings across the air travel industry.

Just under 9,900 passengers of the airport’s sole commercial carrier, Spirit Airlines, passed through the terminal in November. That’s up from 8,020 passengers in October but less than half of the 22,156 passengers in November 2019.

Looking ahead to a hoped-for end of the pandemic and recovery of flight bookings, and with the recent addition of a second passenger boarding bridge, the authority is expanding the secured holding area for passengers from about 200 seats to 300 seats.

“That’s almost a plane-ful of extra people,” authority Chairman Paul Puleo said of the expansion. “This is great forward thinking, along with the fact you’ve expanded the runway and made it safer.”

The car rental counter at the airport has been relocated to the terminal’s main level, next to the baggage claim, to make way for the expanded passenger holding area — which Monzo said he’s hopeful can be completed in early January.

The new rental area is “a little more compact, but it’s extremely convenient for the customers, and it looks nice,” Monzo told authority members Tuesday at the board’s virtual meeting. Customers now can “look out the door and see what kind of cars they have available.”

Authority engineer Scott Kunselman reported work on widening the runway from 100 feet to 150 feet is 99% completed, and it is in use. Related taxiway improvements are slated for spring.

The authority this week also approved a five-year agreement with CS&E Co. to maintain the terminal’s HVAC systems, which are being updated. The company will be paid $19,100 in the first year, followed by annual 3% increases.