46 TERMINALS May | June 2026 AirportImprovement.com CID around the oculi. This encourages passengers to relax and spend time in naturally lit spaces while maintaining sightlines to their gates. From a design perspective, concessions were placed to reinforce intuitive wayfinding rather than disrupt it. “We let light pull people through the building. Concessions become landmarks rather than obstacles,” Dubbe explains. Maintaining Security and the Schedule Rinderknecht Associates Inc. served as the airport’s general contractor for Phase 4, completing the final concourse expansion. “[Our] role was everything construction— bringing the drawings to fruition while accommodating the added complications of working on a site with a lot of moving parts,” explains Bob Gaffney, the company’s president and chief executive officer. “It was still a functioning airport, and we had to keep eight gates open and nine plane parking spots open at all times in case of emergency.” Construction phasing required continual adjustment as flight schedules, gate assignments and supply chain conditions evolved. The team also implemented rigorous safety and cleanliness protocols. “One person’s entire responsibility on the project was to keep work areas spotless,” Gaffney shares. “We went to great lengths to make sure there were never any foreign materials in the air or on the tarmac.” Building a major concourse extension inside an active, secure terminal environment demanded a high level of discipline and coordination from the construction team. “Phasing was critical to project success,” Gaffney says. “We had to maintain a separate, secured construction gate and keep passengers, contractors and airport personnel safe at all times.” The airport issued security badges—approved by TSA—that allowed Rinderknecht Associates to track workers entering and exiting the site and comply with Davis-Bacon requirements while allowing work to proceed efficiently. “Temporary access that we created and manned nine hours a day allowed us to do so much during airport operating hours,” Gaffney reports. Interior and exterior construction schedules were decoupled to hedge against potential material procurement delays, though supply chain issues delayed delivery of façade panels and patio pavers. “The exterior delays did not affect the interior work,” says Gaffney. “We managed them separately.” Sustainable Without the Label Although the airport did not pursue formal LEED certification for the project, sustainability was embedded throughout design and construction. Energy efficiency, durability and operational resilience guided decisions across all four phases, influencing both visible design elements and underlying infrastructure systems. One of the most significant sustainability investments was a geothermal heating and cooling system. A geothermal well field installed during earlier phases reduced reliance on conventional heating systems and was also extended to support heated sidewalks and curbside areas. “All of that was heated through geothermal, which helps us keep salt from coming into the building, and all but eliminated our primary slip and fall scenarios during the winter season,” Lenss notes. As the terminal expanded, the project team supplemented the geothermal system with a central utility plant to ensure adequate capacity and system redundancy as operational demand increased. Photovoltaic solar panels installed on the terminal roof supply 10% to 15% of the building’s electrical load. Rather than incorporating a system designed to offset total energy use, the airport chose to reduce its demand on nonrenewable sources and integrate renewable energy incrementally to avoid introducing operational risk. Daylight harvesting played a central role in sustainability and passenger experience. Large expanses of glazing, increased ceiling heights and the two oculi significantly reduce the need for artificial lighting during daytime hours. Project designers treated daylight as both an environmental and experiential asset. Durable finishes and long-life architectural elements suited for high-traffic environments further supported the airport’s sustainability goals. Materials were evaluated not only for environmental benefit, but also for long-term operational practicality. “The total cost of ownership over 30 years far BOB GAFFNEY
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