The Denver City Council has approved a US$300m concourse expansion program for Denver International Airport in Colorado.
According to media reports, the airport plans to expand its gates on Concourse A from nine to 14 in an expanded ground-loading facility on the same concourse by 2024. The contract additions also include repaving the apron areas at some older gates, new de-icing pads and around US$50m in insurance-covered repairs on the east end of Concourse B.
These concourse changes will arrive alongside outdoor boarding procedures for Frontier Airlines passengers until 2034. As these procedures involve ramps and stairs connected to the aircraft, they are expected to speed up passenger loading and unloading. The expansion work on the ground-load facility for the airline will cost an estimated US$183m.
Some board members reportedly expressed dissatisfaction with the expense. Amanda Sawyer, a board member of Denver City Council, said to local newspaper The Denver Post, “I certainly understand the time pressure… but I also think that when we look at contracts, two of those five deals are currently over US$1bn. For us not to send them back to the auction is simply unacceptable.”