New Kansas City International Airport Terminal Brings Enhanced Air Travel Experience to Region

In February, the first flights departed from the new single terminal at Missouri’s Kansas City International Airport, marking the end of a five-year development, design and construction effort and ushering in a new era of air travel in the region. The 1.1-million-square-foot, Design-Build project, was developed by Edgemoor Infrastructure & Real Estate and constructed by a joint-venture team led by Clark Construction Group, and including The Weitz Company and Clarkson Construction Company.

The new facility, which wholly replaces Kansas City’s existing terminal buildings, features two levels, one for departures and one for arrivals, with clear wayfinding and sightlines, as well as an adjacent 6,200-space parking structure to provide a seamless transition from parking to gate. Designed with adaptability and expansion in mind, the terminal opens with 40 gates with the capability to expand to 50 gates in the future.

The Edgemoor/CWC team, along with the Kansas City Aviation Department, and project designer Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, prioritized community engagement from the project’s outset, hosting hundreds of project presentations and dozens of community design workshops and open house sessions to inform the community about the project and solicit their input on the new terminal’s design and amenities. The result is a modern, convenient, sustainable and inclusive facility that is uniquely Kansas City and meets the diverse needs of travelers in the region.

Thoughtfully designed to meet the needs of all travelers, the new terminal’s features include the Kansas City Air Travel Experience – an airplane simulation room for anxious, first-time travelers or individuals with a fear of flying – a sensory room, quiet room, indoor and outdoor pet relief areas, the Variety KC Inclusive Family Play Zone and glass-boarding bridges to increase natural light, views of the airfield and reduce flight anxiety. The new facility also boasts three times as many toilet fixtures post-security at the terminals, with options including gender-neutral restrooms and family restrooms with adult changing tables.

The terminal features nearly 50 local and global eating and shopping experiences and features $5.6 million of newly commissioned art.

At $1.5 billion, the new terminal is the largest single-infrastructure project in Kansas City history. More than 240 Kansas City-area firms contributed to the project, which generated over 6,500 design- and construction-related jobs. From the outset, Edgemoor/CWC committed to reaching transformative levels of participation from both minorities and women, spurring economic growth in the region. The team developed a workforce training program that created a pathway to careers in the construction trades for 200 men and women. Those individuals went on to work more than 200,000 hours on the new terminal, earning more than $6.5 million in wages and benefits.

In addition, 133 minority- and women-owned Kansas City-based firms were awarded contracts on the project totaling more than $320 million. The team exceeded its project participation goals on every front, ultimately achieving 25.4% MBE and 18.7% WBE participation for construction services, and 20.5% MBE and 16.4% WBE participation for professional services.

As well as meeting the city’s goals for accessibility, inclusivity and diverse participation, the new terminal is also among the most sustainable airport facilities in the nation. The project recently achieved LEED Gold certification, making it the first LEED v4 Gold BD+C: NC terminal/concourse project in the Midwest, and the second in the nation. Sustainable features include locally sourced materials, electric charging stations for personal and commercial vehicles, smart building systems, efficient lighting and improved air quality.

Learn more at BuildKCI.com or tour the facility virtually here.