CONTACTS:
Tim Bradshaw, AAE, Airport Director or Sara Mau, Directorof Operations, 319-362-3131
Pam Hinman, Director of Marketing & Communications, 286-5719
Airport Terminal Renovations Underway
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 20, 2011 - Customers at The Eastern Iowa Airport will be seeing some major changes in the terminal over the next several months as additional improvements are made to the facility.
Airport Director Tim Bradshaw, AAE, said it is part of the airport’s ongoing Terminal Modernization Program that began with improvements to the C Concourse in 2008.
The current phase of the program involves removing the three large machines in the terminal used by the Federal Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to scan checked luggage. The machines were installed in the lobby in 2002 when post 9/11 security measures were put into place.
Removing the machines has long been discussed and it has been in the airport’s capital improvement plan. Total cost of this project is $8.2 million. The TSA will pay almost $3 million for the security-related portions of the overall project.
The timeline for this initiative was moved up when the TSA funding was appropriated. The in-line baggage system is expected to be complete by fall of 2012.
In place of the stand-alone machines the public now sees will be an out-of-sight in-line baggage system installed in a 10,000-square-foot secure addition being built onto the back side of the terminal. When the system is up and running – in about 18 months – it will mean passengers will check their bag in at the airport ticket counter and then airline personnel will place it on a conveyor belt which will transport the bags for TSA screening.
“It is another customer service improvement because it eliminates the need for the passenger to check the luggage at the airline ticket counter, and then take it to the TSA screening area,” Bradshaw said. “This will be a more seamless process.”
Bradshaw said there is another plus to having the baggage screening machines removed: It frees up a significant amount of space in the terminal lobby.
“Each machine, and the accompanying equipment, takes a large footprint out of the lobby,” he said. “When the machines are relocated we can then remodel the existing lobby space.”
The airport is one of the region’s most prominent gateways and Bradshaw said he takes that designation very seriously.
“This is often the first and last impression a visitor has to our region. It’s important for us to have a clean, up-to-date facility that reflects the local culture and shows a visitor what the region has to offer,” he said.
But, as with any construction, there will be some adjustments needed during the project.
Along with removing the screening machines and installing the in-line baggage system, all the airline ticket counters will be moved to the west wing of the terminal. This is where the United/Continental and Delta counters are presently located.
Sara Mau, AAE, airport operations director, said the project is going to be done in phases. For example, once a new airline ticket counter is completed, an airline will be relocated.
“We are working very hard to minimize the impact to the airline employees and our customers,” Mau said. “We will be installing various types of signage to help customers understand where they need to go.”
One major step to help customers has already been put into place; the Information Center has been moved to a central location in the terminal. Airport information specialists work in the booth daily and are the airport’s front-line staff to assist customers.
Bradshaw said as soon as he learned of the details of the project, he knew the Information Center needed to be relocated to best serve customers.
“The information desk’s previous location was very nice,” he said. “But I thought it was important to have airport personnel highly visible and able to easily provide assistance.”
Changes are already underway; Allegiant Air’s ticket counter and office space has been moved to a temporary location, adjacent to its present space. Allegiant employees will now use the office space previously occupied by Burlington Trailways. Trailways moved from the terminal and is now located at another airport campus location, 2816 Lippisch Place.
Delta Airlines will also have its temporary counter in place soon, adjacent to its present location. That temporary change will be a minor adjustment for customers, Mau said.
“As the project moves along, there will be more ticket counter moves and changes in regard to where customers take their checked bags to be screened,” she said.
A third element of this project is the construction of additional restrooms in the lobby. Presently, there is one set of men’s and women’s restrooms. If a restroom must be closed for maintenance, customers have to be escorted through security checkpoint to use the nearest facilities.
Bradshaw said a family restroom will also be included. The new restrooms will be located in the terminal area previously occupied by Trailways.
Foth Infrastructure and Environment, with an office in Cedar Rapids serves as The Eastern Iowa Airport’s engineering consultant. Miller Dunwiddie Architects, Minneapolis, is the project architect and BNP Associates, Inc., Denver, is a consulting firm specializing in aviation baggage handling.
The Eastern Iowa Airport serves the greater Cedar Rapids/Iowa City region with four airlines providing non-stop service to eleven destinations. The airline and the destinations served are as follows:
American Eagle Chicago and Dallas-Ft. Worth
Delta Detroit, Minneapolis, Memphis (seasonal June 9 – Aug. 15) and Atlanta, daily service begins Aug. 16
United/Continental Chicago, Denver and Houston
Allegiant Air Las Vegas, Phoenix-Mesa, Orlando Sanford and Tampa/St. Pete
For more information about the airport, go to www.crairport.org
CONTACTS:
Tim Bradshaw, AAE, airport director 319-362-3131
Sara Mau, AAE, operations director 319-362-3131
Pam Hinman, dir. of mktg. & comm. O: 319-731-5719/C:319-551-149