Broward County Aviation Budget Workshop: Terminal 5, Airline Agreements, and FY27 Budget – August 20, 2026
Broward County Aviation Department Budget Workshop (August 20, 2026)
Mark Gale, Director of Aviation, presented with Finance Director Priscilla Diaz and Budget Manager Noelia Orozco. The workshop covered the Terminal 5 program update, the negotiated airline lease and use agreement (LUA) and terminal building lease agreement (TBLA), and the FY27 aviation budget.
Terminal 5 Program Update
- Terminal 5 structure: Broward County Aviation Department has general oversight and design rights; JetBlue acts as program developer under the existing TBLA; Parsons (program management), Gensler (design), Hunt Moss (contractor), and Keith (inspection services) are subcontractors. Funds flow through JetBlue and are reimbursed by the county.
- Cost history: 2021 preliminary estimate was $36 million; the project budget increased to $404 million due to modifications, utility infrastructure, and unforeseen conditions, with signatory airlines agreeing via a Majority In Interest (MII) vote. At 60% design in 2024, the estimate rose to $654 million; with contingency funds, to $699 million; airlines again agreed via MII. A final guaranteed maximum price (FGMP) was negotiated on June 9, 2026: $702,338,000 for construction, with an overall program cost of $829 million.
- Cost drivers: 100% design plans, industry cost escalation/inflation, approval plans from the authority having jurisdiction, and a revised construction schedule (890 days to 1,277 days). Building square footage increased by about 10,000 sq ft; cost per sq ft rose from $1,445 to $1,531. Notice to proceed is projected for October 2026, with substantial completion in March 2030.
- Comparison with other airports: FLL T5 ($404M to $829M), Miami Concourse K ($600M to $746M), Miami Concourse D ($827M to $1.1B), Tampa Airside D ($787M to $1.5B), Jacksonville Concourse B ($344M to $440M).
- The Terminal Connector Project ($279 million) will connect Terminals 1, 2, and 3 behind security; T2-T3 is expected next summer, and T1-T2 in spring 2028.
Airline Lease and Use Agreement and Terminal Building Lease Agreement
- These documents are required by Broward County Code Section 240. Current agreements were approved in 2011, amended in 2014, and expire September 30, 2026. Negotiations began in 2023; eight signatory carriers (JetBlue, Delta, Southwest, United, American, Allegiant, Frontier, Air Canada) hired a liaison office; negotiations have concluded ("pencils down").
- New agreements: seven-year term, residual-based, meaning airlines remain the financial backstop. Airlines approved $3.2 billion in general airport revenue bond authorization, including $2.75 billion for Master Plan Phase 1A (APM, Intermodal Center, Terminal 5, Palm Garage, roadway system, central utility plant), $313 million for state of good repair, and $168.5 million for Phase 1B (Terminal 4 Concourse G early design). With other funding sources, this supports a capital program of approximately $4.8 billion.
- New reserve accounts: $5 million airport development subaccount in FY27 growing to $10.61 million by FY29; cash reserve funded by per-enplaned passenger deposits rising from $0.50 to $1.25 until 500 days cash on hand is realized; FIS rate stabilization account funded with approximately $55 million, using the first $19.2 million to keep the international FIS fee capped at $12 with 5% annual escalation.
- Capital project approval threshold raised from $150,000 to $15 million.
- Gate, counter, and office provisions include an annual reset of preferential gates; 66 total gates, with 56 preferential and 10 common use; dynamic signage replacing static signs; and enhanced airline-airport communication with quarterly and monthly meetings.
- Staff recommended bringing the signed agreements to the Commission on September 10, 2026.
FY27 Aviation Budget
- Enplanements: FY26 forecast is 15.9 million, 4.9% below the FY26 budget, largely due to Spirit Airlines' bankruptcy/ceasing operations; FY27 is projected at 16.51 million, 1.3% below FY26 budget but about 4% above the FY26 forecast. December 2026 seats are up 2.5% over December 2025.
- Revenues and expenses: FY27 total operating revenue is expected to decrease 4.3%; operating expense is expected to increase about 5.5%; net revenue is budgeted to decrease 34.9% vs. the FY26 budget and 14.3% vs. the FY26 forecast. The FY27 budget is $409.4 million, with 43% airline revenue and 57% non-airline revenue.
- Rates: Cost per enplaned passenger (CPE) is budgeted at $10.60, down $0.42; landing fee decreases 7.8% to $2.38 from $2.58; FIS fee is capped at $12 vs. current $14; type II space rate is $215.72. Without FIS stabilization, the FIS fee would have jumped to $21.
- Other revenue: rental cars from $83.8 million to $79.6 million; parking from $69 million budget to $65 million projection; concessions $49.7 million; ride-share fee is $3 per pickup (state-mandated equal to taxi fee); 85% of commercial pickups are ride-share.
- Cost context: FLL's average one-way fare is $261.69, the lowest in the nation per a 2026 LocalInsiders/BLS report.
- A commissioner asked about reliance on federal/state funding; staff responded that the county can proceed even if federal funding is reduced, citing a $380 million surtax contribution, approximately $200 million state earmark for the APM, passenger facility charges, and grants, though IIJA funds are unlikely.
- Capital: FY27 capital budget is $152 million, with $79 million in the airline rate base ($64 million bonds, $14.6 million cash); the last airport bond issuance was 2019. Five-year capital program includes landside spending of $611 million (FY28), $1.1 billion (FY29), and $710 million (FY30); the Intermodal Center adds 7,000 parking spaces.
Related Airport Updates
- North Perry Airport: no significant expansion plans; runway safety/lighting improvements, FAA control tower replacement discussions, and ongoing safety assessment and LED studies; PAPIs are to be replaced by the end of 2026.
- APM/Intermodal Center: ongoing discussions with FEC for the APM guideway crossing over FEC right-of-way at about 60-65 feet; projects have independent utility. The airport-seaport connector is under the Transportation Department, on county property, in the PDE phase, with completion around 2032.
Family Court Program Consensus
- Commissioner Rich requested renewed board consensus to fund the family court trial court administrator program on a one-time basis, at the same amount as the previous year, pending November reevaluation. She noted 209 families have been referred. Board members expressed consensus.
Key Outcomes
- Board consensus to proceed with the airline lease and use agreement and terminal building lease agreement and bring them to the September 10, 2026 Commission meeting for formal action.
- Board consensus to fund the family court program one-time again, pending November review.
- No formal votes were taken at the workshop.
Meeting Transcript
Always a pleasure to be with you, and uh we'll go through our budget presentation with me at the table today is uh our director of finance, Priscilla Diaz, uh, and our budget manager. Uh I think most of you know uh Noelia Orozco. Um the numbers get really hard, I'll just look at these guys and they can get us through on the numbers side of the house. So we ready to go? Let's see where this goes. So, Commissioners, this this presentation is uh slightly different than uh maybe what we've done in the past because there's a couple of really key issues that we need to talk uh about today. Um your agenda and table of contents. Uh we've broke this up into three different pieces. The first piece is to come back to the Terminal Five program to give you a little bit of background and update on where we are with Terminal Five and the work we've been doing since we met with you uh last August at the budget workshop and the things that we still needed to complete in order to move forward with the program. The second piece is uh really we're gonna spend some time to talk about the airline lease and use agreement and the terminal building lease agreement. They are companion documents. This is the culmination of the negotiation with the airlines that we're bringing back to you. We think we've landed in a really good spot in order to move the airport forward. Uh and we'll go through the elements of the deal. And then that leads into the FY27 aviation budget. We line it up this way because Terminal Five and the additional cost for Terminal Five is going to be actually part of the approved projects for the uh airline lease and use agreement, uh, that they will support the increases in the cost. And then ultimately the FY27 budget is geared off of the elements or the articles that are inside the agreements. So we have to take it in that order in order for it to make sense. So with that, we'll just jump right in. So Terminal 5. Just to bring everybody back uh to the program structure for Terminal 5, how it's put together. Uh Broward County Aviation Department has general program oversight. We retain the rights for the design. Um, but we've uh contracted, if you will, in a sense, with JetBlue to actually oversee the program, call it a uh a program uh developer, if you will. Uh they have the implementation responsibilities. We execute that through the existing terminal building lease agreement. And then after that, JetBlue contracts uh with uh four different entities here. Uh Parsons uh doing the program management. Gensler was the design team, Hunt Moss is the contractor, and Keith uh will be providing the inspection services. Uh the funds obviously come uh from the airport, and they funnel through JetBlue handles the contracts, and then JetBlue submits for reimbursement into uh into the county. So in 2021, the Terminal 5 program definition uh document was completed, defining the preferred concept layout, uh, the activity levels, the design considerations, and the preliminary cost estimate of 36 million. The project budget increase to 404 million, increased uh was uh driven primarily by modifications, construction definition, utility infrastructures that was previously unidentified, unforeseen circumstances. Our signatory airlines agreed to cover the majority of the cost via what we refer to as a majority in interest vote or an MII vote. As you may recall, airlines under our existing agreements have voting rights on our capital project, anything over $150,000, they get to vote on because the debt service is covered through our rates and charges. We'll talk a little bit about that, how that is going to change in the new agreement. In 2024, at the 60 percent design level, it resulted in a project increase to $654 million. That increase again driven by further program definition, advancement of the design, global economic impacts, including escalating cost of materials and services. Additional contingency funds were incorporated, increasing the total estimated project cost to $699 million. That was still based on the 60% design. The signatory airlines again agreed to cover the cost via an MI vote in June of last year. That is what we brought to you in August when we presented. We said this is where we are right now, but we're still working through the design. And our next steps were to complete the T5 design to $100 percent. JetBlue and Hunt Moss were to produce the final guaranteed maximum price, or what we refer to as the FGMP for review and approval, and then assemble and submit conformed design drawings for final permitting. So where are we? Hunt Moss began pricing and bidding with the trades and subcontractors and JetBlue received the proposed final GMP on April 27, 2026. JetBlue and BCAD commenced industry review of the construction packages and pricing. After extensive reviews and analysis and industry benchmarking, JetBlue finalized the negotiations with Hunt Moss on June 9th, which resulted in an FGMP of $702,338,000 for construction and an overall program cost of $829 million. Factors contributing to the overall cost increase. Costs are based on $100 percent design plans rather than actual bids, or excuse me, rather than uh 60% design levels, continued industry cost escalation and inflation.
openpublica.com