Nov. 2—The terminal at the Lafayette Regional Airport could welcome its first flights early next year.
Airport director Steve Picou and airport commission chair Paul Segura led media representatives and city and parish elected officials on a tour of the 120,000-square-foot terminal that is north of the 60,000-square-foot current one on Monday.
The tour was nearly three years since state and local officials broke ground on the new $150 million project that's been paid as it's gone on, leaving no debt after completion. A new terminal, U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy said on that balmy day three years ago, would make help make Lafayette "a major city," proclaiming that "you cannot be a major city without a major airport — period, end of story."
Come January, the airport will be a reality.
"It's going to look like a real airport," Segura said, "as opposed to what we had before, which looks like an airport but a very dated airport. So the building speaks for itself. It's about 95% done, and we'll be opening soon."
It comes as the airport passenger traffic continues to return to pre-COVID-19 levels in Lafayette. It topped 20,000 incoming and outgoing passengers in October, the fourth month to top the 20,000 mark this year. In 2019, the airport topped that mark every month but four.
What's new
The inline bag system may be the most noticeable feature, one that resembles your typical airport. Passengers will check in and hand over their large bag to the airline personnel, who will send it back on a conveyor to be screened in a secure, non-public room.
"No more rolling your bag to the TSA and the TSA takes it and then the airline comes get it," Picou said. "No more of that."
The terminal will have five gates: Delta at Gate 1, United at gates 2 and 3, American at Gate 4 and a fifth gate to be available if necessary, and each gate will have new jet bridges. In one of many examples of design with a nod to the future expansion, the terminal has room for two more gates to the south to be built.
"The whole building is built with the future in mind," Picou said.
The new terminal will also mean 199 new parking spots added to the current 966.
What you'll like about it
The building is significantly more spacious than the current terminal, with its wide concourses and larger waiting areas. What may be the most obvious is the wider space for TSA security checkpoint for passengers.
There will be two lines with room for a third.
Past that point, the rotunda area will feature the smart glass, an electronically tintable glass that tints or clears on demand depending on the conditions. It dims to control the heat and glare for customers inside.
The same restaurant in the current terminal, Acadiana Tap Room, will move over to the new one. It will also have two spaces for sundry items for sale, all of which will be open to customers who may or may not be a passenger that day.
The rental car area will be adjacent to the terminal and will feature covered lots for vehicles.
What's interesting
The canopy in front of the terminal has stained glass with colors found in the Acadiana flag. Also, a large image of the Atchafalaya basin is mounted on the wall in the TSA passenger screening area.
Visitors will be able to access the restaurant and other areas past the security checkpoint.
Amid the restroom area are specialized rooms: a service animal relief area, equipped with artificial grass, and two mother's rooms for mothers traveling with small children.
All lighting will be LED, which will cut back on utility costs, and the building will feature 194 security cameras along with a new paging system.
What's next
The new terminal could get the attention of other airlines, Picou noted. Frontier officially pulled out of Lafayette in early 2020, citing demand that was "insufficient to continue."
Without identifying the airline, Picou said the departing airline would consider returning once the new terminal was in operation.
Currently the big three airlines — Delta, United and American — have about 15 flights a day out of Lafayette heading to Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas and Houston. Whether or not more come remains to be seen.
"A lot of people are looking for a fast buck," Picou said. "I'm looking to grow and nurture the ones we have, get them to expand and make the others say, 'Hey, we want to be in Lafayette.'"
The current terminal will be demolished once the new one opens. It will not be imploded, Picou noted, and the building contains asbestos that must be removed. The project will be put out for bid early next year.
Once the new terminal opens, the first activity will be incoming flights at the end of a day followed by departing flights in the morning, Picou said.
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