It took local officials nearly 14 years to begin developing thousands of acres of land around Pittsburgh International Airport. Now there seems to be no stopping it.

The Allegheny County Airport Authority, which now oversees the land, hopes to start development of a 60-acre parcel adjacent to Cherrington office park before the end of the year.

It would be the second large tract under development in less than 12 months. In January, the authority began road, utility and other infrastructure work and grading for Clinton Commerce Park, a 240-acre site at Route 60 and Clinton Road.

Yesterday, the authority board awarded an $8.6 million contract to Oakdale Construction to begin similar work on the Cherrington Extension tract, with hopes of having it ready for development by next fall.

The project, totaling $10 million in all, involves grading and utility work and construction of a road from Cherrington office park to Ewing Road, unlocking the land for development. Also, another lane will be added to two-lane Ewing.

Even before the first shovel has hit the ground, the authority has secured a letter of intent with DiCicco Development to lease about half the parcel, with plans to develop it in phases with a mix of tech, flex and professional office space, said Randy Forister, authority economic development director.

DiCicco erected the headquarters building for Lanxess Corp. in RIDC Park West and also developed Westpointe Corporate Center Two in Moon for Nova Chemicals. The company is headed by Sam DiCicco.

"He does a really nice quality product so we're excited to have him on the team," Mr. Forister said.

DiCicco will have a 30-year lease with options to renew. Mr. Forister said under the terms of the lease, it will be responsible for developing another building every 18 months.

He would not disclose any other terms.

He said DiCicco will not begin any development until the site work has been completed next fall.

The Cherrington Extension project is being done in conjunction with the Moon Transportation Authority. Of the $10 million cost, $8 million is being covered through state grants. The airport authority and Moon Transportation Authority will pay the rest.

As the airport authority starts development of the Cherrington Extension project, it is finishing up grading and infrastructure work on Clinton Commerce Park. Mr. Forister said that work should be completed by early next month.

The Buncher Co. already has begun work on a 400,000-square-foot warehouse at the Clinton Commerce Park site under agreement with the authority. It will lease and manage the warehouse and pay a base rate of 8 cents a square foot to the authority, plus additional amounts based on the success of the venture.

Clinton Commerce Park initially will involve five sites over 100 acres, allowing for the development of 1.5 million square feet of building space. The county and airport authority believe the park will create 750 to 1,500 jobs.

The authority took over control of the land from the county after its creation in 1999, and has made a concerted effort to get development moving.

"I think we're making great progress," Mr. Forister said.