Airport Master Plan

Airport Facts

The Albert Whitted Airport (Airport) serves as St. Petersburg's air transportation gateway. Owned by the City of St. Petersburg, the Airport is located to the immediate southeast of the heart of downtown St. Petersburg on the shores of Tampa Bay. The Airport is a general aviation airport and further classified as a reliever for nearby Tampa International and St. Pete-Clearwater International Airports. The Airport is used by aircraft for all types of applications except for scheduled air carrier service.

	The airport property encompasses ±180 acres, including ±110 acres for functional aeronautical use; ±10 acres for non-aeronautical use and ±60 acres of submerged bay bottom.
	The airport has two runways:  Runway 7-25 is designated as the primary runway at 3,677 feet long and 75 feet wide, while Runway 18-36 is the secondary crosswind runway at 2,864 feet long by 150 feet wide.
	The airport is home to approximately 180 based aircraft which includes a mix of single-engine, multi-engine, and rotor wing aircraft.
	In 2017 the airport had ±93,000 aircraft operations (takeoffs and landings) including occasional transient corporate jets.

The Airport's website (www.albertwhittedairport.com) provides additional background information including an overview of the Airport's facilities and services offered to aircraft operators, area businesses, and the surrounding community.

What is an Airport Master Plan?

An Airport Master Plan is a long-range planning document that serves several important purposes for airport management, airport users, and the local community. Airports receiving development grants from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) are also required to conduct periodic updates of their planning documents in order to remain eligible for future grants. The primary goal of the new Albert Whitted Master Plan is to create a 20-year development program to maintain a safe, efficient, economical, and environmentally acceptable airport facility for the City of St. Petersburg and surrounding community. By achieving this goal, the study will provide the guidance to satisfy the aviation demand in a financially feasible and responsible manner, while at the same time addressing the aviation, environmental, and socioeconomic issues of the community. In support of this goal, the following study objectives will be accomplished:

	Ensure orderly development:  consider short-term needs and long-term plans;
	Ensure compliance with latest FAA design criteria, grant assurances, and policies;
	Provide flexibility to allow the airport to respond to changes in the aviation industry;
	Meet FAA Airport Geographic Information System (AGIS) mandate;
	Create a new Airport Layout Plan (ALP) drawing set;
	Integrate sustainability and resiliency concepts to ensure long-term viability;
	Enhance role as a gateway to the community
	Integrate the City’s Downtown Waterfront Master Plan elements; and
	Secure broad community buy-in for the future development program.

While a number of these objectives fulfill the broader goals of a comprehensive planning document, some are much more unique to the airfield’s setting and surrounding environment.

Master Plan Process

The Master Plan provides a systematic outline of the development actions required to maintain and further develop the airfield as well as landside facilities. This process provides those officials responsible for the scheduling, budgeting, and ultimate funding of airport improvement projects with an advance plan of the airport’s needs. By phasing airport development, improvements can be conducted in an orderly and timely fashion.

Throughout this process, reviews are conducted to insure input is received from key stakeholders, including the City of St. Petersburg, airport tenants, airport users, FAA, FDOT, airport traffic control management, and the public. The individual steps in the master plan process are built upon information and decisions made during previous steps.

What is an Airport Layout Plan drawing set?

An Airport Layout Plan (ALP) is a set of drawings that graphically depict existing facilities as well as any proposed future changes or improvements. An approved ALP set is required to be on file with the FAA should the aiport desire to be the recipient of federal aviation grants.