New O’Hare concourse revealed, 6 years after it was announced
CHICAGO — Six years after then-Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced “a game changer for the City of Chicago,” the long-delayed terminal expansion plan at O’Hare airport appears finally ready to take flight.
“This is a new chapter for O’Hare,” Mayor Brandon Johnson declared while surrounded by airline and airport executives as a news conference unveiling new renderings of a satellite concourse that will be constructed off of United’s existing “C” concourse in Terminal One.
It will add 19 new gates and pave the way for the demolition of terminal two to be transformed into a new global terminal.
The sequence of construction was critical for Chicago’s anchor airlines, United and American, which demanded veto power over changes to the cost and scope of changes to the terminal expansion plan.
The lack of trust and cost concerns have only grown since 2018 when the Emanuel Administration announced plans for an expansion of Terminal 5 plus the construction of two satellite concourses and an international terminal at a cost of $8 billion. The airlines view the new international terminal as a lynch pin to the project since it will enable connecting passengers to transfer without having to board the airport train.
“This phasing plan will make sure… the most critical elements of the project are built first,” said United Airlines vice president Brandon Fair.
The original cost of the entire project was pegged at $8 billion; but the airlines have grown concerned about a ballooning budget. Notably, airport officials did not respond to a request for an updated cost projection.
Chicago aviation commissioner Jamie Rhee also repeatedly side-stepped reporters’ questions about a timeline for the terminal expansion project.
“We’re really focusing on these enabling projects,” Rhee said referring to site preparation, storm water tunneling and taxiway changes. “The timeline will be revealed once we get this data in from the designers and construction managers who will be building it.”
Airport spokesperson Kevin Bargnes later said the satellite concourse is expected to be completed in 2028. He did not provide a timeline for construction of the global terminal.
Airport officials also failed to address key questions about the satellite concourse project including: How long will it take to walk from check-in to gates in the satellite concourse and will some passengers have to go outside to board buses, as depicted in one of the renderings?
O’Hare successfully expanded Terminal 5 during the pandemic, creating new gate and lounge space for Delta, Southwest and other carriers. A new parking garage is also under construction.
However, a plan to upgrade the airport train system which connects the terminals, rental car facility and remote parking was years behind-schedule and faced frequent outages.
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