Colorado Springs Airport's Big Plans Include Terminal Addition, New Control Tower

Mar. 27—Colorado Springs Airport wants to double the number of gates to its passenger terminal from 12 to 24, according to a draft copy of the airport's master plan.

The addition could cost $75 million to $125 million and probably would be built in two phases, depending on passenger traffic during the next 20 years, said Greg Phillips, Colorado Springs aviation director. Denver-based aviation planning firm Jviation has developed five alternatives to expand the 12-gate terminal once additional capacity is needed. The recommended option calls for 12 additional gates as well as more space for ticketing and baggage claim areas.

"We have significant capacity in this terminal before we get to the point where a brick-and-mortar addition is needed," Phillips said Thursday. "The terminal handled more than twice as many passengers, when Western Pacific (Airlines) was here in the late 1990s, as are forecast to use the facility this year. But we do want to plan for that," which could happen during the next five to 10 years.

Airport officials are in the early stages of planning a major renovation of the passenger terminal, which opened in 1994, to wring out additional capacity and delay the need for a costly expansion. The project, which would replace worn-out carpeting, aging mechanical systems and add food and gift options, is expected to cost up to $20 million — paid from reserves — and take up to five years to complete.

The airport updates its master plan every eight to 12 years for everything from the passenger terminal, parking, cargo facilities, runways, a new and taller control tower, navigation facilities, public transportation and its business park, Phillips said. The airport has scheduled a virtual meeting Wednesday to seek public comment on the plan, which is expected to be completed by midyear, he said.

The planning effort comes as the airport's passenger numbers surged last year to a 13-year high of nearly 1 million passengers, fueled by Southwest Airlines expanding to Colorado Springs .

Phillips said military and private aircraft traffic also have grown in recent years and Amazon has opened three distribution and sorting facilities in the airport's Peak Innovation Park.

"This is an important effort for us — as we are growing, we need to be forward-thinking about where we need to go, so we are involving tenants, passengers and the public," Phillips said.

No cost estimates or construction schedules have yet been completed for the terminal expansion, a proposed new and relocated control tower, a parking garage for rental cars as well as several runway and taxiway realignments and other projects. The estimates and schedules are still being developed and expected to be added to the draft after the public comment sessions.

All of the terminal expansion options call for demolishing the airport's east terminal, which is built in the late 1990s by WestPac and never used and is nearing the end of its useful life, Phillips said. Most of the options include building additions to the terminal's north end.

The control tower move and runway and taxiway realignments would require approval from the Federal Aviation Administration and would be financed by grants from the agency, Phillips said.

The recommended site for a new, taller tower would be east of the airport's rental car lot and would offer better visibility of the airport's three runways, all taxiways and other facilities such as de-icing areas and paved holding areas, said Tony Davis, a senior airport planner and program manager for Jviation.

Other elements of the master plan include:

— Consolidating rental-car facilities in a parking garage west of the airport's short-term parking lot. That move would free up hundreds of spaces east of the short-term parking lot and allow expansion of long-term parking to the south on land where rental-car providers have offices and other facilities. The project could cost up to $15 million, paid by fees rental companies charge customers.

— Shift the airport's west runway nearly 2,500 feet south to eliminate an intersection with the airport's crosswind runway that has the potential to cause an accident, though no accident has happened there.

— Realign six taxiways to eliminate 90-degree turns from the airport's two north-south runways, a project that would bring the taxiways into compliance with current FAA guidelines.

— Expand the airport's cargo facility to handle growing cargo volume.

— Relocate the airport's maintenance and storage facility, which includes its snow-clearing equipment, from the west side of the airport to the south end of the east runway to reduce the distance from the facility to the runway most used by airlines.

— Build a new, expanded deicing area for passenger aircraft closer to the east runway.

— Consolidate fueling areas for private aircraft on the airport's west side.

— Add more bus routes to the airport to improve public transportation access.

___

(c)2022 The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colo.)

Visit The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colo.) at www.gazette.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.