We are averaging about a 150 people a day, which is just the equivalent of a new flight, so we can handle it. We purposely chose to allow this from Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., because that’s a time when our T.S.A. average wait times are often below five minutes. It’s not crowded, we have room, and we monitor to make sure that the flying public always has priority. We did this mindful of the fact that we could maintain our high level of safety and security. The T.S.A. folks in our airport live in this community, so they know how important this is too.

Image Christina Cassotis. Credit... Pittsburgh International Airport

Beyond shopping and dining at the airport, how are people taking advantage of My Pit Pass?

There was a really nice story about grandparents who were meeting their grandchild for the first time; their daughter was flying alone with a baby, and they were able to meet her right at the gate. Also, there are parents with little kids who want to see big planes, and it’s nice that we can allow that.

Like other airports aiming for destination status, Pittsburgh International offers cultural events and an Art in the Airport program. What can visitors expect to see?

We have been very fortunate that the Richard King Mellon Foundation is sponsoring a lot of cultural and art exhibits at the airport to highlight community assets for travelers. We’ve got one with the Frick Pittsburgh [in Concourse B] and some happening with Carnegie Mellon University [including the interactive “Earth’s Time Lapse” installation in Concourse C showing changes to global environments over time]. There are new shops and restaurants and we have upgraded the overall look of the interior.

The city of Pittsburgh itself is experiencing a revival, economically and creatively. How does the airport figure into that?

Pittsburgh has this incredibly rich history in building this country and went through two big gut punches: steel tanked and then the [US Airways] hub left. What’s fascinating is to watch this whole community, with a lot of deliberate effort on the parts of a very bipartisan and cross-functional group of government, civic, university and nonprofit and business leaders, come together and say, “O.K., we have got to figure this out.” And now we’re seeing it happen. They’ve got this amazing diversified economy and their swagger is back.

For years this airport was looked at as a drag on the community. Now there’s all this new activity, all these new flights, all this excitement, all this investment. Now, people are thinking, “I’ve got to get out there and see what’s happening.” So, it’s sort of the continuation of the story of the region.