CHIPS DOWN: The Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority’s Board of Commissioners is expected to make some high-stakes decisions at Thursday’s meeting. -- FILE PHOTO/BOB BAYNE

A project that will transform the look and feel of Memphis International Airport will reach an important milestone today when the Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority’s Board of Commissioners votes to award a contract for the construction of a $110 million airport ground transportation center.

Airport management is expected to recommend The Flintco Cos. Inc. to the board. If Flintco is approved, the company should break ground on the facility March 1 with a roughly two-year construction timeline.

Airport president Larry Cox said Flintco won the contract because it was the lowest qualified bidder with a bid of slightly less than $90 million. Still, it did help that the company had the largest DBE (disadvantaged business enterprise) percentages – 30 percent for the overall project and 31 percent for the project’s moving sidewalk.

And it was only coincidental that Flintco is building the $55 million air-traffic control tower for the Federal Aviation Administration. That contract had no bearing on the parking garage project, although it should be an easy transition for the company.

“They don’t have to move very far from one project to the other,” Cox said.

Back on track

As one of the largest single projects in the airport’s history, the ground transportation center – whose architectural renderings will be available next month – is slated to house parking for airport passengers and rental car companies.

The garage will have about 4,500 long-term parking spaces for travelers. Its lower two levels will serve as the operating area for the rental car companies, including their offices, ticket counters and parking spaces. There also will be a “quick turn” area where rental cars will be returned, cleaned and fueled for the next renter.

Airport officials have wanted a new parking garage since 2001, but the events of Sept. 11 delayed that plan. They originally considered building separate parking and rental car facilities, but a sluggish economy during the past few years forced them to meld the two into one building.

The facility will be built in front of the airport where the existing parking structure sits, serving as a new front door for the airport because it will partially conceal the facility’s signature “martini glass” façade.

The structure will include an airfoil wall that will stand out in front of the parking garage. The airport’s logo – an airplane whose contrail, or exhaust vapor, forms a musical note – will adorn the airfoil.

As for dealing with construction and the requisite congestion this project is expected to create, the airport is creating a temporary parking lot on the northeast side of the property, where some cargo buildings recently were razed. That lot, which should be ready in “two or three months,” Cox said, will handle parking needs while the new structure is being built.

Funding for the project is coming from a variety of sources, including state grants ($50 million), capital reserves ($37 million), federal grants ($7.5 million) and rental car fees ($24 million).

Louder than words

Arnold Perl, chairman of the Airport Authority board, called the project a critical component for keeping Memphis International Airport competitive in the global marketplace.

The airport, an economic engine approximated at $28.6 billion, is the centerpiece of a branding campaign that refers to the city as “America’s Aerotropolis.” A state-of-the-art facility for origination, destination and through passengers will go a long way to bolstering that claim.

“The ground transportation center will be a further step in providing the ultimate of customer satisfaction both for local travelers as well as visitors to the city of Memphis,” Perl said. “The ground transportation center, when combined with the new FAA control tower, will provide an unmistakable statement that Memphis International and the FAA have upgraded the infrastructure both on the airfield and on the ground.”

In other news, the airport will have its master plan ready in the next few months. Airport officials soon will submit it to the FAA for approval.

Cox said based on all the recent improvements made in the airfield and air traffic control system, no additional major airfield improvements are needed, and most of the other enhancements will be made to the terminal building.

One of the largest forthcoming projects is the replacement of the apron surrounding the main terminal, which acts as the driveway for aircraft. Replacing the apron will spark the need for additional gates to provide relief during the reconstruction process.

MSCAA holds its board meetings the third Thursday of every month at 8 a.m. in the Airport Authority board room inside the terminal building at Memphis International Airport.

In today’s meeting, Jim Ethridge is expected to be elected vice chairman of the board. A full slate of division reports also is scheduled.

The next MSCAA board meeting is set for Jan. 28, a change from the original date.