The Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners has given the go-ahead to a minimum of $400m in private investment to construct a four-storey cargo facility at Miami International Airport. Said to be the first of its kind in the Western Hemisphere, when completed, it will increase the airport’s total cargo capacity by at least 50% or potentially up to two million tonnes annually.
Scheduled for completion in 2029, the new facility will bring MIA’s total capacity to a minimum of 4.5 million tonnes of cargo and potentially 5 million tonnes, future-proofing America’s busiest international freight airport until the year 2041 and 11 years ahead of projections. Without this construction, MIA would begin to reach capacity at three million tonnes of cargo annually. The airport is on pace for more than 2.9 million tonnes of cargo this year, it said.
“This is great news for our community and our economy. MIA is our largest economic engine, generating thousands of jobs for our residents and significant income for many of our leading industries, from tourism to small businesses. MIA continues to increase its ranks among US airports and worldwide regarding cargo volume. With the construction of this unprecedented, state-of-the-art air cargo facility now on track, the sky is the limit for where MIA can lead the air cargo industry globally after consecutive record-breaking years in cargo growth since 2020,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.
The VICC
The future Vertically Integrated Cargo Community (VICC) at MIA, a nearly 800,000 sq ft facility on 11 acres of airport land, will have a massive local economic impact as well: 8,500 new temporary jobs earning a total of $500m in wages during five years of design and construction; 2,500 new permanent jobs earning $100m post-construction; and a minimum of $512m in rent and business revenue to Miami-Dade County’s Aviation Department over the 40 years of the agreement.
In addition to its impact on job creation and local business revenue, the VICC will be a sustainable, environmentally friendly facility with a silver Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification and a silver certification from Global Infrastructure Basel under SuRe standards for sustainability and resiliency.
