Miami International Airport terminal upgrade advances

County commissioners were expected this week to approve a seven-year, $40 million contract for architectural and engineering services as part of a far larger expenditure to upgrade Miami International Airport’s Central Terminal.

“The Central Terminal is a key part of MIA’s infrastructure,” a mayor’s report to commissioners says. “It houses various essential services and facilities including airport support offices, ticketing counters, concession spaces, and security checkpoints.

“Although the Central Terminal is older than other sections of MIA and has outdated facilities, it continues to play an essential role in MIA’s operations.”

Along with a Central Terminal makeover “Concourses E and F will be modernized to provide MIA’s travelers with a fresh and futurist customer experience,” the report said.

It continued, “These capital improvement projects … will furnish the infrastructure to support new technologies; raise the roof structure to allow natural light to enter the terminal; create a secure connection between Concourses E and F and the North and South Terminals at the second and third levels; enlarge passenger circulation and concession spaces; and increase capacity at the security checkpoints.”

The Professional Service Agreement would be with Carty Architecture LLC, a Coral Gables-based, woman-owned architecture and interior design firm whose founder, Judy Carty, has more than 25 years of experience in the field.

“The purpose of this redevelopment project,” the mayor’s report says, “is to improve overall customer satisfaction and customer loyalty within the Central Terminal by providing air travelers with ultra-modern, stylish facilities and technology-driven solutions that improve convenience, promote efficiencies, and create an innovative environment.”

Phase one of the modernization of the central terminal, which was built in the 1950s, is due to be completed in 2031 at an overall cost of $373 million, partly financed by federal grants. Phase two is due to be completed in 2033 at an estimated $372 million cost, for a total cost for the terminal work of $745 million.