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COVER STORY: ESD Head Discusses How NYS Recovers
LGA TERMINAL B PROJECT COMPLETE
BY BENJAMIN FANG
Travelers flying out of LaGuardia Airport’s Terminal B now have a new arrivals and departures hall.
Governor Andrew Cuomo, the Port Authority and LaGuardia Gateway Partners celebrated the opening of the new Terminal B Headhouse last month.
Officials said the project, which was built on time and on budget, is the “most significant milestone yet” in the $8 billion transformation of LaGuardia Airport.
“We’re grateful for this once-ina-lifetime opportunity to reimagine LaGuardia from the ground up,” said Richard Kennedy, president and CEO of Skanska USA, one of the companies responsible for designing and constructing the new Terminal B. “And for the thousands of employees, subcontractors and trades who logged millions of hours helping us realize this vision.”
The four-level building integrates with passenger concourses and gates, includes a new parking garage and connects to Terminal C and the planned LaGuardia AirTrain.
The 850,000-square-foot facility also features 60-foot-tall ceilings and a glass facade.
On the first floor is a new ground transportation center for arriving passengers, with the arrivals hall and baggage claim on the second level. The third floor will be home to check-in, while the top floor contains shops, restaurants and other amenities.
The $8 billion renovation of LaGuardia Airport has been conducted in phases to allow for the building of a new terminal without disrupting operations. The airport handled a record 31 million passengers last year, officials said.
The project’s most recent milestone was the completion of the Terminal B Eastern Concourse, which opened to the public in December 2018. It houses a total of 18 gates.
Another concourse is currently under construction. When completed, it will allow Terminal B to have a total capacity of 35 gates.
In addition to completing the Headhouse, Skanska will also construct 17 new roadway bridges, more than eight miles of new roadways and two miles of new taxiway space. Officials said that will improve aircraft circulation and reduce taxi times and delays.
Overall, the new roadway network will have 16 fewer traffic lights.
“Today’s opening should be a shining symbol of the region’s potential for a strong economic recovery with the vitality of New York before COVID-19,” said Rick Cotton, executive director of the Port Authority.
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