The Susquehanna Area Regional Airport Authority (SARAA), formed in 1998, is a multimunicipal authority that owns and oversees the operation of Harrisburg International and Capital City airports. In 1998, SARAA engaged Leigh Fisher Associates to prepare Master Plans that would provide the vision for developing and improving the airports well into the 21st century.

The most significant challenge was to make the most effective use of Harrisburg International Airport's small (approximately 800 acres) and geographically constrained site. With the Susquehanna River on one side, two railroad lines on another, and residential communities on the airport borders, accommodating growth at HIA presented many complex issues to resolve.

The recommended Master Plan for HIA allows SARAA to accommodate significant growth and meet long-term facility and level-of-service requirements primarily through improved land use efficiency--ensuring, to the extent feasible, that nonaviation activities are located away from the valuable and scarce land closest to the airfield. To improve land use efficiency, the Plan calls ultimately for a 3,000-space parking garage, demolition of older buildings and redevelopment of the area east of the terminal, a taxiway parallel to the runway, and expansion of terminal and cargo facilities toward the runway.

The recommended Master Plans ensure that, for the next 20 years and beyond, HIA will continue to fulfill its primary role as the air carrier airport serving central Pennsylvania, and that Capital City Airport will continue to accommodate the region's general aviation needs and serve as a reliever airport for HIA.

A key element of the success of the master planning process was the ongoing involvement of key stakeholders. Three expert-panel workshops were held to provide the passenger and cargo airlines, other airport tenants, FAA and PennDOT representatives, and airport staff an opportunity to discuss and provide valuable insight into future airport needs and concerns. These workshops also allowed the evaluation and refinement of alternative airport development concepts in an open environment where the most promising concepts could be identified and refined quickly, ensuring consensus on an achievable and appropriate development plan.

Client
Susquehanna Area Regional Airport Authority

Services
-Master and System Planning