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Chilly building trades ramp up work on Gerald Ford airport parking deck

Date Posted: February 8 2008

GRAND RAPIDS - Things are looking up at Gerald R. Ford International Airport, where reinforced concrete columns poking up from frozen ground marks the first stage of construction of a massive new parking deck and terminal improvements.

Ground was broken Sept. 6 on the $138 million "Ramp Up" parking project. Construction will include a new 4,900-space, four-story, covered parking ramp and pedestrian sky bridges connecting the ramp to the terminal. Work will also include a covered canopy for passenger drop-offs, new utilities and roadway infrastructure.

The airport calls this construction a "capstone piece" in a continuous improvement plan going back to 1992. Past improvements have included runway extensions and rebuilding, an extensive renovation of the passenger terminal building, and construction of a new runway, air cargo center, and a shuttle parking facility.

"We're excited about getting started with this truly significant project in the
airport's history," said Jim Koslosky, Kent County aeronautics director, at the groundbreaking. "We are committed to offering a higher level of customer service, improving convenience, and expanding our ability to meet the increasing demands of travelers now and into the future. We look forward to supporting the many economic development efforts and investments being made in our region."

The project will be completed in 2009. It is currently dominated by dozens of 35-foot-tall reinforced concrete columns that will support the parking deck. Christman Construction is managing the entire project, and Bee Steel is performing reinforced iron work.

"There are so many I've stopped keeping track of the number of columns," said rod foreman Todd Foreman (no that's not a typo). "It's been a really fast pace out here. With all this work I'm thankful that there haven't been any safety incidents or accidents."

Kraig Kloostra, who owns Bee Steel, said about 30 percent of the 1,448 columns have been erected. About 5,000 tons of re-bar encased in the concrete columns, will support the cast-in-place parking structure.

"We're off to a good start, and when spring arrives we'll get started on the deck," Kloostra said. "It's a lot of repetitive work, but we're staying on top of it."

The Gerald R. Ford International Airport currently serves more than two million
passengers annually. It is the second busiest airport in Michigan and ranks
among the top 15 percent of busiest airports nationwide. It facilitates 112,000 takeoffs and landings each year - an average of more than 300 per day.

Among carriers providing service to the airport include Northwest (44 percent of traffic) as well as American Eagle, United/United Express, Continental Express and Midwest Connect. The airport is served by eight carriers with 120 daily scheduled non-stops to 15 major market destinations.

According to the Grand Rapids Business Journal, supporters of the new parking ramp hope it will make the airport more attractive to carriers seeking to expand operations.

RE-BAR FOR A "COLUMN PAD" - one of 1,448 column bases that will be erected to support a massive parking structure at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport - are set by Matt Wilk and Ray Masselink of Iron Workers Local 340 and Bee Steel.
HERE'S A RENDERING of the completed Gerald R. Ford International Airport parking deck, sky ramps and terminal canopy.