Work begins on airport terminal expansion

The Springfield-Branson Regional Airport may not have moving walkways and passenger trams like those in Kansas City and Denver, but it's getting there.

Construction began in March to expand the airport's existing terminal into the building formerly known as Hangar One, which is located south of the terminal.

Hangar One will be converted to a ground transportation facility to accommodate tour buses and increased vehicular traffic, and it will connect to the existing terminal's expanded baggage claim area via a long hallway, according to Leigh Daniels, communications director for the airport.

Two additional gates also will be added onto the new transportation building.

"The major reasons for the expansion are that our roadway system was not designed to accommodate the amount and types of vehicular traffic we have, more specifically, motor coaches," Director of Aviation Rob Hancik said.

"Our parking lot is also at capacity. We only have about 220 spaces, which is really not enough. Our bag claim is extremely small for the amount of flights we have; it (expansion) will also make provisions for acceptance of four additional rent-a-car (counters)," he said.

Walton Construction Co. Inc. is the general contractor for the project, which has an estimated cost of $9.2 million.

Hancik said the expansion's funding is through a $3-per-ticket passenger facility charge program and a federal transportation grant that requires a 20 percent match.

The match will come from airport revenues, Hancik said.

"The basic idea for a passenger facility charge is that the users of the system pay for the system," Hancik said.

He said the airport's manual flight information boards will also be replaced with television monitors with part of the passenger facility charge funds.

The purpose of the terminal expansion is to relieve congestion at the airport, both in the terminal and in the parking lots, which will also be expanded. The path of the entrance road to the airport will have to change to accommodate the expanded terminal, Hancik said.

The expansion will accommodate the airport's needs for the next 10 to 15 years until construction begins on a brand new terminal, to be located on land the airport owns adjacent to the existing building. Daniels said the existing terminal will either be converted to hangar or office space, or perhaps torn down when the new facility, called the Midfield Project, is complete.

"The program is to build a whole new terminal complex on the other side of the airfield by the control tower where we have about 460 acres of real estate. The forecast says we can have that in place in 12 to 15 years.

"There's no adequate access to that site now, so we're working with MoDOT, Greene County and the city to find new access roads to the new terminal site," Hancik said.

Hancik said a public information meeting on the Midfield Project will be held the second week in May.

Hancik said the airport's long-term plans also include replacing the main runway.

The runway is nearly 30 years old and needs to be fixed.

"The most pressing need at this airport now is our primary instrument runway has structural failure. It's falling apart," Hancik said.

Plans for replacing the runway include extending the east-west runway from 5,600 feet to 8,000 feet and using it while the main runway is under construction. Hancik said construction will begin on replacing the main runway in 2002, and it will cost approximately $29 million.