The Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, in seeking to elevate the passenger experience, opened Phase I of the new nine-gate expansion. The expansion became operational on Barbara Jordan’s birthday, February 21 with a Delta to Atlanta flight at 5:40 a.m. The terminal and apron expansion is a $350 million project. The project includes:
• Nine new gates to the terminal, which increases the total number of gates to 34. This includes increasing international flight gates from two to six.
• The terminal expansion project is nearly 175,000 square feet and includes 88,359 square feet of concourse space; 52,282 square feet of apron level space for baggage makeup conveyors, additional inbound baggage systems, airline operations space, airport support space, and other related ancillary facilities; 28,205 square feet of mezzanine and platform level space; 5,770 square feet of outdoor east terrace; and expanding the paved aircraft area around the terminal by 48 acres to better accommodate larger and more aircraft and increased overnight aircraft parking at Austin’s airport.
• Designed to meet LEED Silver certification for overall energy and environmental sustainability.
• The original Barbara Jordan Terminal was designed to serve 11 million passengers annually. In 2018, the airport served 15.8 million annual passengers.
• 175,000 square feet of the new terminal, gate area, and wider concourse space will be added. The terminal, if stood on end it would be taller than the Frost Tower in downtown Austin.
• 6,000 tons of steel was used in the construction of the 9-gate expansion.
• Twenty consulting firms were engaged with a five-person, all women on-site project delivery team. The terminal at the Austin-Bergstrom is named after Barbara Jordan. As an elected official, Barbara Jordan accomplished many firsts. She was the first African American to serve in the Texas Senate since Reconstruction (1966-72), the first African American woman elected to the U.S. Congress from the South (1972-78) and the first woman to deliver the keynote address at a national party convention (Democratic Convention 1976, and again in 1992). Her riveting Watergate testimony in 1974 inspired America's attention to the strength and foundation of the Constitution of the United States of America. Many Austinites remember her fondly as an educator at The University of Texas at Austin/LBJ School of Public Affairs (1979-96) and, respectfully as Governor Ann Richards' counsel on ethics. Many also remember well the way she captivated listeners with her powerful voice, oratorical skills, and her ability to clarify complex moral issues of the day. The first life-sized statue of the late Barbara Jordan resides in the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. Created by California artist Bruce Wolfe, the bronze sculpture depicts Jordan seated, in deep thought, with her fingertips pressed together; her glasses and a book placed in her lap.
