After years of preparation, work officially began Monday on a new terminal at John Glenn Columbus International Airport, a project Gov. Mike DeWine dubbed “Ohio’s front porch.”
With the “Top Gun” song “Danger Zone” blasting away, about 300 visitors gathered under a tent on the airport’s “blue lot” to celebrate the groundbreaking of the nearly $2-billion project.
“This has been years in the making,” said Elizabeth Kessler, chair of the Columbus Regional Airport Authority board. “This new terminal will make flying to and from Columbus a first-class experience.”
Monday’s event coincided with the closing of the blue parking lot to allow for the construction. The new terminal will be built on the lot, west of the current terminal on the south side of International Gateway, the main drive into the airport.
Gov. Mike DeWine and other politicians celebrated the ground-breaking Monday for a new terminal at John Glenn Columbus International Airport.
The ground-breaking caps years of planning for a terminal to replace the existing 66-year-old terminal. Airport officials have argued for years that the current terminal, with its three concourses, is outdated and inefficient.
“What we’re seeing today is the future,” said U.S. Rep. Mike Carey, R-Columbus. “Yes, it’s the front porch. It’s also a sign that says, ‘Welcome home.'”
What a new terminal brings
The new terminal will feature 36 gates compared with the current 29, and will be able to accommodate up to 13 million passengers that the airport is forecasting to hit 20 years after the terminal opens. The airport is on track this year to set a record for passenger traffic, topping 8.6 million passengers in 2019.
Gov. Mike DeWine, to the right of center, and Columbus Regional Airport Authority Chairman and President Joe Nardone, left of center, join others in a ceremonial ground-breaking for a new airport terminal Monday.
The new terminal will also be able to handle larger aircraft, including the 747-8, Boeing’s largest plane.
“This will allow a seamless experience for carriers,” said Adam Decaire, an Ohio native who is a senior vice president at Southwest Airlines, the airport’s largest carrier. “For travelers, it provides a single concourse and security checkpoint.”
The current terminal’s three concourses, a function of the terminal’s expansion, will be replaced by one security check and one concourse that will centralize concessions in one place.
The new terminal at John Glenn Columbus International Airport will include a central concourse instead of the three current ones.
Who pays for the terminal?
The terminal is expected to cost $1.6 billion, in addition to $110 million for design and staffing costs and $179 million for a new garage, for a total of $1.89 billion.
Ultimately, taxpayers and airport users will foot the bill. The airport authority has $240 million on hand for the terminal. It also expects to receive $140 million in federal grants and $100 million from other sources toward the project.
The remaining costs, about $1.5 billion, will be financed through the sale of bonds that will be paid over time from airport revenue, which comes from several sources such as parking, taxis, airline fees, and fees from businesses that operate at the terminal.
Terminal timeline
Airport authority officials hope to complete the terminal by 2029 — in time for the airport’s 100th anniversary.
Some important steps toward the new terminal have already been taken, such as building the 5,000-car garage that will connect with a new rental car facility.
In 2022, the airport hired Gensler, a San Francisco-based company with experience in aviation architecture, and Moody Nolan, a Columbus-based firm, to design the airport. The construction manager is Colorado-based Hensel Phelps Construction Company, with local support from the Columbus firm Elford.
The airport authority and Hensel Phelps have not agreed to sign a Community Benefits Agreement sought by the Columbus Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council, prompting about a dozen union protesters at Monday’s gathering.
Airport officials and political figures made a point Monday to reference the value of the new terminal to the entire central Ohio community and workforce.
As Franklin County Commissioner Kevin Boyce noted, “this is a gateway to dreams and possibilities.”
jweiker@dispatch.com
@JimWeiker
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus John Glenn airport begins $2 billion terminal construction