Portland International Jetport | PWM

[markhb]

Must be nice! Landscaping and beautification is such a low priority in this state.....it has always bugged the hell out of me....and always will!

My late dad drove truck for a career, and he (not a sophisticated man by any means) remarked on this too... after seeing the way things were done across the rest of the country, he noticed that when things were built here, even attractions like e.g. Seacoast Club in Windham, they weren't "done up". I'd personally say that many things here, setting aside actual ornamental construction (and not talking about the Jetport so much as the typical standalone establishments found on Maine highways), tend to be one coat of paint shy of where they should be. That's probably why the Pirates Cove minigolf courses stand out so much.

 

[Portlander]

I think International Drive is one of the most scenic terminal approaches in the country, it is well maintained, has wildlife sculptures and sidewalk along the entire length.

 

[PWMFlyer]

According to the Master Plan, to reach 1.3 million enplanements, the jetport needs at least 13 gates. With the expansion of the new gates with fixed jetways, June July August September October will beat 2024. Depending on when this project will be done in May, could see increases over 2024. My prediction is 2.6 million passengers compared to 2.4 in FY24 a 5% increase.

 

[NR2Portland]

January of 2024 PWM had 53k enplanements… 10k more in January 2025 and I still think they could offer more service!! Impressive. Certainly looking like another record year!

I understand the arguments against the surface lot to a certain extent. It’s not a modern solution, it’s not environmentally friendly, it seems like a short term solution… but I’m tired of the argument against any more surface parking because it is necessary!!
- The Jetports footprint is tiny compared to airports or similar or smaller size.
- The Jetports parking is full or close to full most months of the year with more and more people going to Boston to avoid the hassle.
- You can’t simply just take away 200-300 spots for half a year to build a garage. Do you have any idea how much lost revenue that is for the Jetport?
- The surface parking was approved, so that debate should be over and done with. It’s creating much needed parking for when a long term solution (the garage expansion) is being built shortly after the completion of the surface parking project.

I agree the city lacks in the department of having a vision for the future. Paul Bradbury certainly doesn’t lack in that category. This project is a huge step into the future of PWM, and while it may seem near sighted now, when that garage is under construction and the parking is still 85-95% full instead of at capacity, you will be thankful for this. In 20 years from now when we see 2 million + enplanements per year, we will be happy with the surface and garage options at the Jetport and may be talking about more parking that is needed!

 

[PWMFlyer]

Breeze is adding 2 more days to its MCO run starting in June. Wed and Sat. which is also PSM runs. I also heard that the PSM yields are awful. The same goes for RSW. This could be a result of F9 only going to Sat only MCO runs June thru Aug.

 

[PlantArch]

Remember the limited funding sources the city has available. The only tax revenue they have is from direct taxes on their citizens: property and excise taxes. Grant funding and state revenue sharing are mercurial. The Legislature takes very seriously the state constitution's mandate that it never surrender the power of taxation. That's why proposals to grant local option taxing powers rarely even make it to the chamber floors; they typically die with an ONTP in committee.

Also, re: Bozeman, how many of those developments are HOA communities?

Very few of the Bozeman developments have HOA's. This pre-development is mandated by city code.

 

[Cosakita18]

Breeze is adding 2 more days to its MCO run starting in June. Wed and Sat. which is also PSM runs. I also heard that the PSM yields are awful. The same goes for RSW. This could be a result of F9 only going to Sat only MCO runs June thru Aug.

PSM-RSW yields are bad? or PWM-RSW yields are bad? Everything I've seen indicates that PWM-RSW does fairly well.

Glad to see Breeze upping its game to MCO. I'd love to see them go 5x-7x weekly for next winter / spring.

I'm still bracing myself for when F9 inevitably pulls out of PWM. They have no summer routes scheduled as of now, and during the peak of the summer they'll only have 1x weekly to MCO.

 

[PWMFlyer]

Its Pease, I heard its around 47% yields RSW and MCO, I am wondering if they will pull out.
As for F9, BTV is seeing the same MCO schedule. Is it better to take the summer off and go daily in the fall/winter/Spring?

 

[markhb]

The new parking lot purchase was necessary in order to accommodate the cars that will be displaced in the lot to the west of the garage which will eventually allow construction to begin on the garage addition. Baggage claim improvements are expected to start later this year with the flat plate carousels being replaced with incline versions. You are correct TC, the current 2 gate expansion probably should have been part of the 2011 project but the passenger counts at that time did not justify 14 gates. The built out for this project was originally only going to include the actual attachment of the enclosed boarding walkways to the side of the present terminal. I think Paul got tired of me complaining about not utilizing the potential space above the ground level for so long he finally relented and found enough funding out of the most recent grant to pull it off. He also found money out of PWM's capital improvement funds to replace all of the carpet throughout the entire upper concourse. Replacement of 5 jetways (gates 3-7) is planned to start later this year at a cost of around 800K each. Gates 2, 8, 9, 10 and 11 are in excellent shape with a few more years of service and the jetways for 12 and 14 will be brand new once the expansion is hopefully completed in late May.

The neighbors are appealing the Planning Board approval to Superior Court.

 

[PWMFlyer]

Does it surprise me? no, Nothing will ever make them happy. A neighborhood of 500+K houses what do you expect. What's next, a big gate that only the elite can live and attend their annual picnic. Mr Tate would be rolling in his grave... This will be thrown out due to the fact it went through the process. Yes they are planning a garage, but it takes several years to plan and build. No they cannot use the Maine Mall!!! The individual land owners do not want it. A: the jetport does not own the parking lots and you cannot just put up a fence and a gate without going through the SOPO Planning Board. B: due to new regulations regarding parking lots in SOPO, if you disturb or tear up the Asphalt, you have to install EV chargers. C. Shuttle Buses- who buys new ones, or operate them. Gas, bus drivers, insurance, ? Maybe we just get rid of the nice playground that was provided, open the road, and use street parking. LOL

 

[markhb]

Mr Tate would be rolling in his grave...

As in the Tate House Mr. Tate? He was a mast agent for the Royal Navy under Kings George II and III, so my hunch is that he would sympathize with the rich neighbors.

 

[PWMFlyer]

As in the Tate House Mr. Tate? He was a mast agent for the Royal Navy under Kings George II and III, so my hunch is that he would sympathize with the rich neighbors.

Because he was in the Timber industry, he would say cut them down to make money... then tax for the King!!!!

 

[NR2Portland]

I don’t think it was reported in here yet, but Spirit officially dumped MHT. Not a big surprise but, federally funded and did not last long. Im so glad we have a destination airport instead of whatever they are trying to be!

 

[TC_zoid]

I think the Jetport is due for substantial growth in a few years. At the MEREDA conference yesterday, a rep from Roux spoke and said the old bean factory that is being renovated is going to house 50-100 startups, and that they will primarily not be from Maine (as it is now), so many will be using the Jetport. Add increased tourism and new residents, and the Jetport better build a giant parking garage (ideally, a separate one for all rental cars) or functions will be affected.

 

[Portlander]

 

[Portlander]

PWM art gallery space that most travelers are not aware of!

 

[PWMFlyer]

Executive office space area?

 

[Portlander]

Actually located to the rear of Burger King and through an opening on the right and is visible from the ticket counter area if you look up at the glass windows. The other entrance is behind the escalator as you come down from screening and it is a nice escape from the crowded gate area if you're looking comfortable seating with limited contact with humans!

 

[NR2Portland]

That area should be promoted much better! Very relaxing escape from the bustle of the terminal.
Also wish there was signage on the temporary construction wall saying “coming soon” or “we will look a lot better shortly” with a couple renderings of the new space. Get people excited about PWMs growth.

 

[markhb]

That area should be promoted much better! Very relaxing escape from the bustle of the terminal.
Also wish there was signage on the temporary construction wall saying “coming soon” or “we will look a lot better shortly” with a couple renderings of the new space. Get people excited about PWMs growth.

A nice "from this... to this!" photo set with the "before" pic showing customers making their way across the tarmac in frozen January might be a nice touch! (I might have some similar pics from a chilly November night.)