Construction begins on $9.5B JFK Airport Terminal One

Dive Brief:

• The new $9.5 billion Terminal One expansion at John F. Kennedy Airport in Queens, New York City, broke ground last week, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced in a Sept. 8 press release. The project’s design-build team is AECOM Tishman and Gensler.
• New York’s Port Authority is in charge of the privately financed project, which is expected to create 10,000 jobs including 6,000 roles in construction. The Port Authority is building supporting road and utility infrastructure.
• The 2.4-million-square-foot international terminal will be built in phases. The arrivals and departures hall and 14 new gates are set to open in 2026, and the final nine gates are slated to be complete by 2030, Hochul said.

Dive Insight:

The new Terminal One will be built on the sites of the current Terminal One and Terminal Two, as well as the former Terminal Three, which was demolished in 2014. It’s a key part of the overarching $18 billion redevelopment underway at JFK Airport.

At the Terminal One groundbreaking event, Hochul expressed delight about the launch of construction on the project.

“Right now you go through a place like Penn Station and the former LaGuardia and… you just wanted to look down. You shuffled along, you know, just kind of in the masses,” said Hochul in a transcript of remarks from the ceremony. “Now, when you come through our airports, you see beautiful artwork that lifts the spirit, lifts the soul… It is a transformative, positive, very human experience.”

The new terminal will include shops, restaurants, an indoor green space, public art and more. It will also feature renewable energy technologies such as solar hot water and aircraft de-icing and fluid recovery, as well as electric-powered ground service equipment such as baggage tractors and belt loaders.

The four-part upgrade at JFK also entails: