HANOVER TWP., Pa. — The Lehigh Northampton Airport Authority’s board of governors voted Tuesday to approve higher ride-share fees at Lehigh Valley International Airport and select a company to design a new parking garage there.
The board authorized updated agreements with Uber and Lyft Tuesday that charge a $2.50 fee on every ride to and from the Lehigh County airport, up from $2.00 previously.
At a committee meeting Monday, airport authority business development director Darren Betters said the $2.50 rate is “pretty much right smack in the middle” of what similarly-sized airports charge, citing data from the American Association of Airport Executives.
The new ride-share agreement also makes adjusting the fee easier for the board going forward, he said.
Previously, raising the fee meant amending or replacing the authority’s agreement with ride-share companies. Under the new rules, the board of governors would only need to pass a resolution setting the new rate.
A third ride-share company, Philadelphia-based GoVysh, recently approached the airport about offering rides, Betters said.
Firm chosen for parking garage design
The board also voted to select Dallas-based firm AECOM to oversee the preliminary design and permitting of a new parking garage at LVIA.
Almost nothing about the proposed garage has been firmly decided, aside from a capacity of roughly 1,000 parking spaces.
“It was a really hard decision, but at the end of the day, just [AECOM’s] presentation itself made us feel very comfortable with the product that we’re going to receive,"Justin Grimshaw
As the project’s design consultant, AECOM will determine exactly where the garage should be built, how long construction will take and how much it will cost.
Representatives from the company will first meet with airport authority officials to hammer out how much work the project will take and how much their services will cost the authority.
Six design companies submitted proposals for the project. After the first round of scoring, the top three candidates were invited to meet with representatives from the airport authority.
“It was a really hard decision, but at the end of the day, just [AECOM’s] presentation itself made us feel very comfortable with the product that we’re going to receive,” said Board of Governors Secretary and Treasurer Justin Grimshaw, who helped choose the company.
“I am extremely comfortable with them doing the project.”
Once AECOM delivers a completed design, a process expected to take between a year and 18 months, the board of governors will vote again on whether to build it.
