The international airport serving the nation’s capital leaves much to be desired. Its facilities are outdated, and it is close to being a fortress hub for United airlines. Back in January in response to a US DOT Request for Information, two of the more than 30 responses proposed dramatic make-overs, from Ferrovial and Macquarie. Each proposed a long-term P3 lease that would rebuild the terminals and open the airport to more airlines.
What a difference eight months make! After perusing various scale models from an array of companies, President Trump announced his own $22 billion plan for the airport, beginning with a 32,000-space parking structure in front of the iconic terminal designed by architect Eero Saarinen. The parking structure, whose capacity is far larger than the airport estimates for 2045, would be about eight stories high (fully above ground), hiding the iconic terminal building.
CBS News (July 29th) released a detailed article summarizing Trump’s new-found role as airport designer. At his request, several engineering companies brought detailed Dulles Airport scale models to and from the White House, to facilitate “his edits to plans for all aspects of Dulles International Airport (IAD).” But he also invited development and financial companies to submit proposals. At least one of them, BlackRock, proposed a long-term P3 lease under which it would finance, design, rebuild, and operate the airport.
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