Transportation
United Airlines Plans $2.6B Houston Expansion With Contractors Clark, Manhattan
The project would add 40 gates to Terminal B at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston.
Rendering courtesy of United Airlines
United Airlines and the Houston Airport System are planning a $2.6-billion Terminal B Transformation Program at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport. The airline has selected Clark Construction Group and Manhattan Construction Co. to build separate pieces of the project.
The project willl add 40 gates for domestic and international travel. Clark is set to build an arrival and departures hall, designed and engineered by Page with Grimshaw Architects. PGAL designed and engineered the concourses, which Manhattan is set to build. Siemens is also working on a new baggage handling system for the expansion. AvAirPros and STV Inc. are United’s program managers for the project.
Construction is expected to involve about 4,000 jobs, according to United. Clark and Manhattan both have pages up on their websites with information for potential subcontractors.
“This is a milestone project that will provide great economic opportunities for local Houston businesses,” said Jason Fuller, vice president of Manhattan Construction, in a statement.
Both contractors have worked on past projects at the airport. PGAL and Manhattan previously collaborated on United’s Terminal C addition completed in 2017.
The plan involves building a three-level, 765,000-sq-ft north concourse at Terminal B with 22 narrow-body gates. The new concourse plan includes a passenger club that United says would be its largest.
The south concourse would be renovated. Thirty gates that currently house small regional jets would be converted to 18 gates accommodating larger aircraft. And unlike now, all flights would be boarded via jet bridge. The project would also add a pair of concessions hubs totaling 115,000 sq ft.
United also plans to expand the curbside capacity and ground-level check-in area and add a traffic bypass allowing Terminal B passengers to leave the airport without passing Terminal A as they must do now.
The Houston City Council agreed last month for the Houston Airport System enterprise fund to provide $624 million to support the project, though the Houston Chronicle reports the outgoing city controller has not yet certified the funds. The airline is planning to supply the bulk of the funding itself.
Construction is expected to start after the new year, a United Airlines spokesperson says. They anticipate completion in 2026.
