Plans for a major renovation of Martha’s Vineyard Airport are one step closer to getting off the ground after the airport received a $15 million grant last week.

The Federal Aviation Commission awarded the grant Thursday to upgrade the terminal, update its mechanical systems, improve accessibility and meet the needs of TSA in a post-Sept. 11 world. The airport also hopes to enclose the area where passengers wait to board flights, replacing the tent that current shelters.

Both the airport director and chairman of the airport commission said they were surprised by the size of the grant, and said it could help jump-start the design and permitting process.

“We were not expecting it,” said Bob Rosenbaum, the chair of the commission. “We were obviously thrilled.”

Built in 1998, the 9,800-square foot terminal straddles the West Tisbury and Edgartown town lines, sprung from the remnants of a former Naval base established on the Island in World War II.

The terminal has ticketing areas for the airlines, a small baggage and passenger screening area, rental car counters, the Plane View restaurant and is attached to the general aviation building.

For years, the airport has struggled under spatial constraints due to a rising number of passengers and the space the Transportation Security Administration needs to do its screenings.

The HVAC systems are also old and the airport isn’t using energy efficient equipment. Past reports have said that passenger peaks during the summer have overloaded the building’s mechanical and electrical systems.

“A lot of the facility’s infrastructure is at end of life,” said director Geoff Freeman. “It was never designed for what it has been.”

Both Mr. Freeman and Mr. Rosenbaum emphasized that the project was a renovation, not an expansion to draw in more passengers to the Island. A 2019 plan to significantly expand the terminal was met with criticism and later shelved.

“We’re not looking to bring more airlines here,” Mr. Freeman said. “We’re not expecting to bring more traffic here, we’re just trying to maintain.”

Conceptual designs for a new airport have been suggested in the past. In a 2021 capital improvement plan, the airport proposed a new building to accommodate the large aircraft that have been coming to the Island.

In the coming months airport staff will work with their engineer and design team to come up with ideas for how the space could meet federal requirements.

“The concepts have been out there for a while,” Mr. Rosenbaum said. “Now it’s really a matter of moving forward to get some solid designs and then send them out to get quotes.”

Neither of the men knew exactly how much a renovation would cost before going through the design phase, but Mr. Rosenbaum expected it would be significantly more than $15 million.

However, all of the costs, aside from grants, would be covered by the airport.

“We will not be using any money from any towns or the county,” said Mr. Rosenbaum.

The airport has seen a rising number of passengers in recent years. In 2023, a record year for the airport, more than 78,000 commercial passengers passed through the terminal, compared to 69,000 in 2022. That traffic peaks in the summer, when four commercial airlines and a charter service all fly to the Vineyard. In July of this year, the airport had more than 25,000 passengers.

A terminal redesign would not entail changes to runways in the airfield, according to Mr. Rosenbaum.

“The runway lengths will all stay the same,” he said. “There will be no change to that aspect.”

He also said that the plan is to continue to have the same look and feel of the current cedar-shingled building.

“We really like the look and feel of the terminal,” he said. “It feels very Vineyard-y.”

What will change for sure is the current deteriorating air traffic control tower. The tower is positioned up against the backside of the terminal and will have to move.

The airport was one of only two grant recipients in Massachusetts; Logan Airport in Boston received $10 million.

A revamp of the terminal will need to pass through several hoops before it can take off. The state Department of Environmental Protection, Martha’s Vineyard Commission, FAA, TSA, Edgartown, West Tisbury and potentially other agencies will all need to be approached for approvals. The airport commission has promised to hold public review meetings, as well.

While the idea of a new terminal has been discussed for years, airport officials will need to begin moving quickly, Mr. Rosenbaum said.

“The FAA isn’t going to let us sit around for six years to spend the money,” he said. “They want to see this moving.”