Tampa Airport Begins $25.4M Ticketing Level Expansion To Handle 38M Passengers

The Hillsborough County Aviation Authority gave the green light to a $25.4 million contract with Austin Commercial. This deal kicks off Tampa International Airport's main terminal ticketing expansion. The approval came down earlier today, launching a big renovation designed to handle up to 38 million travelers each year.

Design work kicked off today. The board signed off on the "Part One" contract, and now things are moving. The expansion will tack on 14,000 square feet to the ticketing area, making room for 28 new counter spots.

"The ticketing level has kind of been in its current configuration since the airport opened in 1971," said TPA senior manager of communications Joshua Gillin, according to St. Pete Catalyst. "Travel has changed and the needs of all of our passengers and airlines have changed. The plan is to modernize it in a fashion that reflects the modern traveler and the experience that they expect."

The project will move airline ticket offices to a new 30,000-square-foot space. Everything gets consolidated there. The existing 135,000-square-foot ticketing area gets a full renovation to fit new counter setups.

These updates will make lines move better and help people get around more smoothly, according to an airport document. New tech gets woven into the mix, too. The work stems from TPA's 2022 Master Plan Update, which pushed for expanding and improving the ticket area to keep up with passenger growth and fix problems with how things run now.

The Dallas-based company picked for this job also runs an office in Tampa. A Request for Qualifications went out in September 2025. The HCAA board gave the thumbs up to talks with the company back in February.

Money for the work got approved by HCAA in September as part of its fiscal year 2026 capital budget. The whole project is expected to cost $285.7 million, Gillin said.

A "Part Two" contract covering actual construction will get handed out in 2027. Everything should wrap up in the fourth quarter of 2029.

TPA has several other expansion projects in the works. Construction of the new 16-gate Airside D is underway. Ground broke on the $1.5 billion international arrivals and departures facility in December 2024 — that one should finish up in late 2028 and will be the first new airside terminal at the airport in roughly 20 years.