--- In BATN@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, "10/10 SJ Business Journal" <batn@xxxx> wrote: Published Friday, October 10, 2003, in the San Jose Business Journal Huge icon in airport plan By Andrew F. Hamm Sometime in the next decade or so, travelers making their way to Mineta San Jose International Airport will be guided by a distinct icon that will unmistakably tell them they're on the right path to the airport. What that icon will be isn't known just yet, admits San Francisco-based architects M. Arthur Gensler Jr. & Associates Inc., the firm hired to design the new mega-terminal. But the goal is something that will rival San Francisco's Transamerica pyramid building or the opera house in Sydney, Australia. "Silicon Valley is viewed around the world as the economic mecca of the world -- and they all want to visit here. We need an airport to meet those expectations," says Steven Weindel, vice president of Gensler, which, along with Steinberg Group of San Jose, will design Mineta San Jose's new mega-terminal. Gensler is scheduled to take its conceptual ideas to the San Jose City Council Oct. 14 for approval. For business leaders like Jim Cunneen, president of the San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce, who called the current airport "an embarrassment," the modernization couldn't come too soon. "San Jose is a real bland airport," says airport Commissioner Don Simpson. "We really need a new look." The $1.3 billion terminal will be built in stages starting as early as 2005 with the construction of the $274 million north concourse. When completed, the single 1.07 million-square-foot terminal will increase the number of gates from 32 to 40 and modernize the airport's baggage and boarding security systems. "In the end, it will seem like one big building," Mr. Weindel says. The terminal is being designed with San Jose's core customer, the "high-end business traveler," in mind, Mr. Weindel says. That means making a priority of such things as installation of wireless technology, state-of-the-art cellular technology and even convenient places to store a laptop computer in rest room stalls and next to wash basins. "This is an opportunity to design the first 21st century airport," says Doug Jones, design manager for Mineta San Jose International's design team. The final terminal design isn't expected to be ready until March 2004, Mr. Weindel says. The architectural firms are looking for a consensus on needs before getting into details, he says. That includes talking with several large and small Silicon Valley companies as well as neighborhood groups, Mr. Weindel says. However, some elements are known. Architects are proposing large open spaces in the terminal's central area that include lots of natural light and security checkpoints that are wide open and easy to identify. While tall, glass-dominated walls envisioned before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks probably are not practical due to their conflict with federal security standards, spacious, well-lit areas can still be obtained, Mr. Weindel says. The piecemeal approach has made some airport advocates nervous, drawing comparisons to the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority's efforts to complete its light-rail system. "I can't believe all of this is going to happen," says Steve Tedesco, a member of the San Jose Airport Commission. "We might be building something that never gets completed." The biggest difference between the VTA light-rail project and the airport project is that the mega-terminal construction funding has a steady source of money -- federal funds combined with revenue from airport landing fees, says commission Chairman Carl Honaker. The airport's two major carriers, Southwest Airlines and American Airlines, have expressed support for the new terminal and upgraded security systems. The north concourse also will hold most of the baggage screening devices now being held in tents located just outside the airport's two existing terminals. Ultimately, the airport hopes to install more automated systems that will use a conveyor-belt technology to screen passenger bags. It would be located beneath the main terminal once it is completed. The new mega-terminal will have north and south concourses connecting it to the main terminal. As part of the modernization program, there will be a two-level roadway, new parking facilities for rental cars and short-and long-term parking and -- eventually -- a people mover to get passengers to the airport. "The feel will be a structure that transforms as you move from one part to another, not a bunch of different pieces like now," Mr. Weindel says. "The feel will be a structure that transforms as you move from one part to another, not a bunch of different pieces like now," Mr. Weindel says. Andrew F. Hamm covers transportation for the Business Journal. Reach him at (408) 299-1841. --- End forwarded message ---