Corgan Associates and Fentress Architects teamed up on the design.

The new Concourse B will offer 19 gates, six more than the current concourse.

Just as its name suggests, Sacramento International Airport’s “Big Build” project is a case study in all things large.

At $1.02 billion, the terminal and concourse modernization and expansion program is one of the most expensive projects in the city’s history. Upon completion in January 2012, it will include a four-story, 675,000-sq-ft Terminal B -- three times larger than the existing 216,000-sq-ft terminal. A 19-gate Concourse B will offer six more gates than the current concourse.

Additionally, an estimated 19,557 sq ft of concession space on the landside of the concourse and 23,108 sq ft on the airside will provide the traveling public with 25% more retail and dining facilities.

“The current Terminal B opened in the late ‘60s, and it became obvious over time that it couldn’t handle the new fleets of aircrafts operating here and the new passenger and bag-screening requirements of the Transportation Security Administration,” says Leonard Takayama, deputy director of special projects for the airport. “[The new terminal and concourse] is being built to accommodate an increased number of passengers and to provide the concession amenities that the flying public expects today versus what they expected decades ago.”

Other features include an international arrivals facility designed to accommodate 400 passengers an hour; a two-level roadway allowing access to both arrival and departure facilities; and a dual-track automated people mover system to whisk passengers across the estimated 1,800 ft from the concourse to the farthest gate.

A Phoenix-based joint venture of Austin Commercial and Walsh Construction was chosen by the airport to build the landside terminal. The Sacramento office of Turner Construction was awarded the contract to build the airside portion of Concourse B, with Flatiron Construction Corp. of Benicia and Sacramento-based Teichert Construction assisting with design and construction.

Dallas-headquartered Corgan Associates Inc. was selected as architect of record, with the San Jose offices of Fentress Architects serving as associate architect.

Sacramento International Airport was built in 1967, opening as Sacramento Metropolitan Airport and serving as a hub to only five airline carriers. Additions such as an FAA field inspection office, a second air cargo facility and east-west runway were added in the 1980s.

The last major construction project at the airport took place in the mid-1990s, with the addition of a 5,500-space parking garage for Terminal A.