First published in the Nov. 26 print issue of the Glendale News-Press.
By Andres de Ocampo
Glendale News-Press
Status updates and a development timeline for the new Hollywood Burbank Airport terminal project were reviewed during a recent Glendale City Council meeting.
The new 14-gate terminal will serve as a modern, updated replacement to the existing Bob Hope terminal and is expected to be completed by 2026. It will sit just north of the existing terminal in the northeast quadrant of the airport. The terminal, built in 1930, will be demolished in 2027 following the opening of the new terminal.
The preliminary budget for the project is $1.3 billion and includes the development of the new terminal building as well as parking facilities, utility infrastructure and roadways.
Funding for the project will come from fees and charges by passengers, airlines and tenants who use the facility as well as Federal Aviation Administration grants. No state or city taxes will be used, according to the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority commissioners.
The Airport Authority Commission is a separate government agency made up of nine commissioners from each of the three cities that are tasked with overseeing the operations of the Hollywood-Burbank Airport.
Frank Miller, executive director of the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority, delivered the update at the City Council meeting and said the Airport Authority is currently reviewing potential developers who will handle the terminal project.
“We are in the process of selecting what we call a ‘progressive design-builder.’ This is a team [that] will not only design the building, plan for the terminal facility but will also be responsible for its construction,” Miller said at the meeting.
The Airport Authority decided the design-builder approach allows for faster development, more control of the project and bringing all relevant city agencies together from the start of the project, Miller said.
A selection for the design-builder company to undertake the project is expected to be made during an Airport Authority meeting on Dec. 19. Once a selection has been made for the design-builder company, the design of the terminal will begin and construction is scheduled for 2024.
The Airport Authority has identified three prospective design-builder companies: Austin-WebCor, Holder-Pankow, JV and Turner.
Miller outlined three primary reasons for the development of the replacement terminal project, which is meant to supplement safety issues in the current Bob Hope terminal.
“If you look past the current facility’s 92 years of age, the building is very close to the active runways and taxiways at the airport and clearly not in compliance with the Federal Aviation Administration regulations,” Miller said.
“As we can all imagine, structures built in the 1930s certainly would not be able to withstand the earthquakes that have happened in the past. There is also the issue of underserving users with disabilities. There are a lot of nuances of the building that need to be addressed,” Miller explained about the existing terminal.
