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62 °F Forecast | Road Cams Sunday, September 12, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Prime Times Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Rogue Valley's Finest EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend June 16, 2004 This view looking south shows four new jetways for passenger access to planes. Construction is scheduled to begin within three months. Airport plans take shape County promises larger, more efficient terminal By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune Local airline travelers will be inconvenienced for a time, but a new Medford airport will provide much more space and many more amenities, officials said. Construction is set to begin on the airport within the next three months and is projected to last three years. The contract went to Layton Construction Inc., of Sandy, Utah, and the architectural firm CSHQA, of Boise, Idaho. Local participants include Abell Architectural Group of Medford and several Rogue Valley subcontractors. The county considered proposals from three development teams — among them Adroit Construction of Ashland. But the team of Layton and CSHQA came in under the $35 million budgeted for the project. CSHQA also said they could complete the job in three years rather than agreeing with the county’s five-year estimate, said airport manager Bern Case. "We’ll have a larger, more efficient, more maintenance-friendly terminal where people will be able to see aircraft again," Case said. At approximately 100,000 square feet, the new three-story terminal will be more than three times larger than the current terminal. It will be built where short-term parking is now located. Visitors likely will have to walk a little farther to the terminal during the construction phase, said Gene Abell, of Abell Architectural Group. The firm also plans to create a Web site that will keep travelers abreast of the latest conditions at the airport, he said. Advertisement "The last thing we want is for travelers to be inconvenienced," Abell said. Once the project is complete, the airport will boast four elevated jetways for access to planes, more airline counters and electronic check-in terminals and the capability for curbside check-in — should there be a demand for it in the future, Abell said. Additional traffic lanes will provide easier access to the terminal, taxis and rental car areas. Covered outdoor areas will keep travelers dry while they load and unload bags. Redesigned security areas also will be more convenient, Case said. A secure basement area will house advanced baggage screening and bomb detection equipment. A second-floor observation deck will look down on the passenger waiting area, allowing visitors to wave goodbye, Abell said. And once passengers file through security, they still will be able to purchase food, magazines and other sundries — a welcome change from the current set-up, Case said. "We have a lot of hungry people who clear screening so they don’t miss their flight, and we have them trapped," he said. The new terminal will be built largely of glass and steel but also will have a regional feel with accents of wood and basalt slabs, Abell said. The old terminal will be demolished once the new one — with its bomb resistant tower — is complete. During that time, passengers will board flights outside the building, similar to the current boarding situation, Abell said. The existing terminal now violates federal aviation standards because it sits too close to the runway, Case said. Federal grants are paying $25-27 million of the construction costs, he said. The remainder will be passed on to travelers in the form of ticket fees. The airport served its greatest number of passengers — more than 500,000 — within the past year, Case said. The new building will be able to accommodate a million passengers, a benchmark that should be reached within 20 years, he added. Layton has engaged as sub-contractors Curtius-Huntley Plumbing, Marquess & Associates and Friar & Associates, of Medford; S&S Sheetmetal Inc., of White City; and Welburn Electric, of Phoenix. The county also considered among the final bid offers Boldt Co. and the architectural firm Mead and Hunt of Wisconsin; and PCL Construction Service Inc. of Bellevue, Wash., in partnership with Adroit. Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] Airport project at a glance Jackson County officials announced the award of a bid for the new Jackson County International-Medford Airport. The old terminal will be demolished after the new one is complete. Cost: budgeted at $35 million, with $25-$27 million from the federal government and the remainder from passenger fees Construction start: summer 2004 Completion: scheduled for 2007 Size: 100,000 square feet Features: four elevated jetways, passenger viewing area, passenger dining, larger airline counters, electronic check-in (and future curbside check-in) Construction materials: glass, steel, stone and wood Security: underground baggage handling with advanced screening and bomb-detection equipment Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? 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