‘Building is built’: What’s left to be done before KCI’s new terminal opens in few weeks?
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New KCI terminal
Kansas City International Airport’s new terminal will open Tuesday, Feb. 28. Here’s what to know about the opening and flying through the new space.
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The words “years” and “months” are no longer part of the description Justin Meyer uses when he talks about the opening date of Kansas City International Airport’s new single terminal.
“We’re at the point of the project where we are weeks away,” said Meyer, the deputy director of the Kansas City Aviation Department.
The actual opening date of the $1.5 billion terminal has not been made public yet — that announcement is expected in the second half of January.
“We certainly don’t want to get ahead of ourselves as there’s still a lot of work to be accomplished and we want everyone involved to be laser-focused on the goals that are set in front of us,” he said.
Last year was a significant year for the project where some really critical goals were accomplished — all of the air side paving has been completed, the terrazzo flooring has been laid and hemlock wood ceilings have been installed.
“The building is built,” Meyer said. “Now we’re really just working on the finishing components.”
‘Looks like a construction site’
The work that is being done now, which still makes the building look like a construction site, is finishing the retail and restaurant areas, Meyers said. As those areas are being built, there are building materials in the hallways, as well as ovens, dishwashers and refrigerators that will be going into the restaurants. There are also some signs that still need to be installed.
“Those kinds of finishing build outs are really what’s left ahead of us going forward,” Meyer said.
While walking through the new terminal recently, a colleague of Meyer mentioned that what was once completely clear hallways were now filled with construction materials.
The colleague likened it to when you clean your bedroom and you get everything looking nice but decide to clean the closet as well. So you pull out everything that was in the closet into the room while the closet is being worked on and cleaned.
Continuing with that analogy, Meyer said he’s “confident we will have the room and closet in really good shape here come the end of next month and ready to open.”
There are some “really classy” components to the design and installation of the concessions, Meyer said.
The tile work in Soirée Steak & Oyster House, a Southern inspired steakhouse in A concourse is beautiful, he said. A mural was being painted on the wall last week.
It is really special to be able to stick your head into spaces like those and see the storefronts come to life in a way that really reflects Kansas City, he said. He thinks it delivers civic pride to what Kansas City is as a community.
“A lot of work still to do to get them finished, but we still have time,” Meyer said.
See: Where will you be able to eat or shop at the new KCI airport terminal? Here’s a map
Now hiring
Vantage Airport Group and the concession operators began interviewing workers for the new terminal. They are looking to hire managers, cashiers, cooks and utility workers for both full-time and part-time positions. The first hiring fair was held Monday.
The remaining hiring fairs are being held from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Jan. 23 and Feb. 6 and 13 at the Kansas City Aviation Department at 601 Brasilia Ave. at KCI.
“There’s a great workforce that’s existing in Terminals B and C with a previous contractor,” Meyer said. “I believe the intent is to try to bring all of those individuals over, but certainly there’s a real opportunity for some new opportunities and new positions and new employees to come on board and be part of what we’re doing up here at the airport.”
Vantage Airport Group is looking to fill 1,000 positions. About 200 of those positions are expected to be filled by workers at the existing terminals, Meyer said.
The city’s aviation department is also looking to hire bus drivers and janitors as well as grow its customer service team by adding 12 customer experience agents.
While there is a residency requirement for those working for the aviation department, those working for the airlines, retail and concessions do not have to live in Kansas City. Those jobs are open to anyone in the region.
Backbone of the airport
Testing on the new terminal’s baggage handling system is complete ahead of schedule, officials announced recently. Hundreds of hours of overnight testing were conducted to make sure the system was ready.
The system consists of 2.5 miles of conveyor, six screening machines and more than 11,000 connections. It’s designed to handle more than 2,900 outbound bags per hour.
“The system itself is really kind of the backbone of the airport,” Meyer said. “We have just finished stress testing component and we are feeling really comfortable about that being ready to go on opening day.”
The baggage system will be one of the items tested when the Build KCI team holds its simulated operational test next month. Late last year, volunteers were asked to sign up to help test out the new terminal before it opens.
Last week, the Build KCI announced that the simulation will be held on Feb. 14 and those chosen for the simulation will be notified via email this week. The simulation will allow the construction team, airport officials, airlines, TSA and others test the experience and address any issues before the new terminal opens.
Nearly 12,000 people applied to serve as “passengers” for the test, which Meyer said was an incredible response.
“I think I expected there to be high interest for people to participate because it’s really the first true opportunity for the public to be inside the building since we broke ground,” Meyer said. “I expected there to be interest. I don’t know if I expected 12,000.”
Possibly as early as next week, airport officials will announce a public open house, which would be held in February after the simulation. The goal is to bring as many as 10,000 through the new terminal.
To accommodate that size of a crowd, people will need to sign up online for specific times. Registration will be spread out over multiple days.
Officials also plan a virtual open house as well so people can have the opportunity to see the new terminal from their home.
‘All hands on deck’
The 6,200-space parking garage was completed last year and Meyer sees it as a “incredible amenity” for travelers.
“The lack of garage capacity has been one of our shortfalls in the existing facilities for the several years,” Meyer said. That is especially true for the parking garage at Terminal B, which frequently hits capacity.
The new garage has 50% more capacity than the parking garages at Terminals B and C combined, he said.
The levels are labeled and the crosswalks have been installed. The technology that shows parking spot availability has been installed.
“There will be some calibration that will need to take place over the first couple of days or weeks of opening as that system learns how to see vehicle,” Meyer said.
Instead of driving up and down one aisle after another, the technology will alert drivers if there are open parking spaces in that vicinity.
A lot of finishing work has been done in the massive ticketing hall, including a installation of a digital wall behind the ticketing counters that uses LED technology for airline branding. That technology allows KCI flexibility so that if an airline only needs counter space in the morning, that space can be assigned to another airline in the afternoon. It also makes it easier to allow the branding reflect the airlines as they expand at the airport.
The artwork in the ticketing hall will be installed this month, which includes “The Air Up There” by Nick Cave, “Let the Music Take You” by George Reodriguez and “Wings” by John Balistreri.
The security checkpoint consisting of 16 lines, which is two more than what is currently spread across the two terminals. Some of the machines have been installed, but some pieces of technology will be coming out of the existing terminals.
Some of those components are expected to start moving over to the new terminal at the end of this month. That means KCI will operate with less security equipment during the month of February, which is typically a slower month for air travel.
“We worked really closely with our partners at TSA to ensure that there’s not a customer impact there,” Meyer said.
The installation of of the Kansas City Air Travel Experience has been completed as well. That amenity, designed to help families, including those with autism, become more comfortable with flying, is made with the front of a retired Airbus A321.
The simulator allows people to experience what it’s like to check in for a flight, go through security and board an aircraft.
As for other amenities, work continues on the business center, quiet room and sensory room.
The gate areas are finished and the glass passenger boarding bridges have all been been hung. About 90% of the artwork done by local artists have been installed.
“It really just looks spectacular, brings a lot of life into those gate areas,” Meyer said.
The gate seating, which features power outlets for traveler’s electronics, are mostly installed. Last week, mirrors were added to changing rooms in the restrooms and hooks were being installed in the stalls. The bathrooms themselves are done, although there is some calibration needed of the technology that identifies if a stall is occupied, he said.
The terminal’s air side paving, which services as the aircraft parking apron and taxiways to and from the runways, has been completed. More than 88 acres of concrete was put in place.
The baggage claim area is coming together, Meyer said, with all of the large bag carousels having been installed and tested. Some work needs to be completed on the ceilings. Also, the airport has a new partnership with USO Missouri and is creating a lounge for active duty military members. Work on the lounge is underway.
The contract completion date of the project is March 3. And although the project remains on time and on budget, these last few weeks have become among the most stressful, Meyer said.
“There’s a lot of pressure — this is the city’s largest single infrastructure in its history,” Meyer said. “It is a game changer for the region and there’s a lot of moving parts.”
The airlines have already been told what day the city thinks the new terminal will be opening and they have made some flight adjustments around that date, he said.
“Which means we’ve got to hit the date so we’re really, really focused on that date,” he said. “We’re all hands on deck to make sure we’re successful.”
This story was originally published January 10, 2023 at 6:30 AM.
