At Miami International Airport, a Black-owned operator with deep local roots is quietly running most of the public parking operation that travelers use every day. Airport Parking Associates, now led by Dynise Perry, oversees the bulk of MIA’s public parking under a long-term deal that the company says will steer hundreds of millions of dollars through the airport system. Flyers know the firm through the valet lanes at the Flamingo and Dolphin garages and the digital booking and payment systems at the terminals. Community leaders and workers describe the setup as a rare win for a locally rooted, Black-owned business handling major airport infrastructure.
A decades-long role at MIA
Airport Parking Associates has been part of the MIA parking scene for decades, working under a management agreement that county files show was first awarded in the 1990s and later amended and extended. Records from Miami-Dade County outline those changes to the non-exclusive agreement, while Miami International Airport explains how short-term, long-term and valet parking are concentrated in the Flamingo and Dolphin garages.
New leadership, a major deal
Perry, a retired Miami-Dade public schools administrator with a 30-year career in education, took over Airport Parking Associates in 2022 and is now leading a newly negotiated 10-year contract that the company projects will generate more than $300 million in revenue. In an interview, she stressed that the operation runs on the strength of its staff, saying, “there is no [business] without good, dedicated employees.” These details were reported by The Miami Times.
What the operation looks like
According to The Miami Times, Airport Parking Associates now oversees roughly 10,200 parking spaces at MIA, including two valet operations inside the Flamingo and Dolphin garages. The firm has also expanded its services to West Palm Beach. The paper reported that APA employs about 80 Miami-Dade community members and that the average employee has been with the company for roughly 17 years, a level of longevity that officials and labor advocates say underscores the operator’s footprint in the local workforce.
Tech upgrades and what drivers will see
Company leaders have discussed a slate of upgrades that could change the way travelers park at MIA, including inductive robotic EV chargers, an expanded loyalty program, dynamic pricing and more robust parking pre-booking options. A release from Miami-Dade aviation notes that the airport has added a new garage with 2,240 spaces and has installed dozens of public EV charging ports in that facility. Together, those capital improvements and APA’s planned technology push could make reserved parking and faster EV top-ups a routine part of flying in and out of Miami.
Local impact
The contract keeps day-to-day parking operations in the hands of a firm with longstanding local ties, and it is expected to keep jobs at the airport and in nearby neighborhoods. Listings on Bizprofile.net describe Airport Parking Associates as an active corporate entity, and civic leaders say having a Black-owned operator at MIA carries weight for minority business representation in large public contracts. Airport managers did not immediately provide additional comment for this story.
