Reagan National Airport to kick off $1B revamp in July

Dive Brief:

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority will soon kick off a $1 billion revamp of Reagan National Airport in Arlington, VA, according to the Washington Business Journal. The new facilities will help the airport better accommodate the 23 million passengers who pass through every year.
The demolition of two existing hangars and an office building is scheduled for July, and the first major project will be the $245 million addition of new security checkpoints. Work on 28 checkpoints, relocation of retail and restaurants into the secure area and a new $360 million commuter concourse will run concurrently.
Approximately $400 million of the $1 billion will go toward preconstruction and site work. The security checkpoint portion of the project should be finished in 2020, and the new concourse is scheduled for completion in 2021.

Dive Insight:

In March, airport officials unveiled details about the construction project. AIR Alliance, which includes AECOM and PGAL, designed the new facilities in 2015. Airport officials are also tentatively planning more improvement projects, which will include a new parking garage, facility-wide infrastructure improvements and an upgraded baggage handling system.

Airports across the U.S. are upgrading their facilities to meet growing demand. A March report from the Airports Council International—North America found that it would take approximately $100 billion to execute the necessary infrastructure upgrades at the nation's airports, a 32% increase from the organization's 2015 projections.

Kansas City, MO, officials recently issued a request for proposals for a new $1 billion terminal project at Kansas City International Airport. AECOM and Kansas City, MO–based firm Burns & McDonnell both submitted unsolicited pitches to the city offering to design, finance and build the project, and the city is now pursuing a public-private partnership (P3).

Some city officials expressed concern around any level of privatization, and recent events in Indiana have most likely given their arguments more weight.

The Indiana Finance Authority entered into a P3 with a private consortium, which was to design, build and maintain a 21-mile section of Interstate 69. Earlier this month, the IFA announced that in the wake of a two-year delay, claims of late payments and a projected funding shortfall, it would move to take over the project. Soon after, the IFA said it had reached an agreement with I-69 Development Partners to assume responsibility for the remaining construction and maintenance of the highway. As a testament to the past success of P3s in Indiana and elsewhere, the IFA said it would still consider P3s for future projects.