[DetroitMan]

Grand Rapids airport begins $135M terminal expansion

Gerald R. Ford International Airport has begun a $135 million project to expand its terminal and make traveling more efficient and convenient.

Business, county and airport leaders gathered Wednesday, April 10, for a ceremonial groundbreaking marking the start of construction on the airport’s “terminal enhancement project” that will expand the terminal to the southeast and add 175,000 square feet of new space. The project at the airport at 5500 44th St. SE in Cascade Township is expected to be completed by the end of 2027.

In the expanded and restructured terminal, all of the ticketing operations will be consolidated into one area, and the baggage claim area will be expanded and modernized, resulting in a more “intuitive flow” for passengers, said Tory Richardson, president and CEO of the Gerald R. Ford International Airport Authority.

“What the customer will see when they come up to the terminal building is a much more intuitive flow, so coming into the building all of the ticket counters in one area,” Richardson said, “and then, as people are leaving the building, baggage claim all in the same area with much larger, more appropriately sized baggage claim devices to accommodate the larger airplanes that we see in and out of here every day now.” Behind the scenes, there will also be a new automated system for getting checked bags from the counter through Transportation Security Administration (TSA) inspection and then onto the plane. That system accounts for $80 million of the project’s $135 million price tag. TSA will put $30 million toward the new system.ichardson said the new system will expedite the checked bag process, allowing the airport to take on more passengers in an efficient manner.

The expansion is part of Ford Airport’s larger, $600 million Project Elevate campaign that kicked off in 2019 and contains multiple projects aimed at accommodating passenger growth. No local tax dollars are being used on any of the projects. Ford Airport is paying for the work with a blend of federal and state grants, municipal bonds and airport flier fees.

“We think this is a very exciting time,” Richardson said. “This is one of several projects within our Elevate program investing over $600 million over the next several years, really making sure that the facility is ready to accommodate today’s growth but also future growth.

https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rap...expansion.html