The Gary/Chicago International Airport Authority has issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) from firms to provide professional planning and engineering services to update the airport's vision for the next 20+ years of airport development.
RFQ responses are due January 7, 2016.
The last Master Plan Study for the airport was completed in 2001. That plan called for several major projects, including improved Runway Safety Areas, railroad and power line relocation, improved and new facilities, and extending the airport's main runway.
The airport has accomplished many of the goals outlined in the 2001 Master Plan. Among them, the airport added a second fixed-base operator, B. Coleman Aviation, and two new, LEED-certified hangars at Gary Jet Center. Additionally, the $174 million Runway Expansion Project was completed in July 2015. The project:
- Upgraded Runway Safety Areas to be in compliance with new Federal Aviation Administration standards;
- Relocated 4.6 miles of railroad track, more than 20,000 feet of power lines, and a substation;
- and Extended the main runway by 1,900 feet, allowing the airport to accommodate larger planes and serve more destinations.
Earlier this year, the airport's private partner AFCO/AvPORTS also released its Vision plan for future development at the airport, which includes securing a customs facility and returning commercial airline service to the airport by 2017.
Visit the airport's website to view the Request for Qualifications. Qualified teams will be interviewed and a contract is expected in March 2016.
The State of Indiana and the RDA invested a total of $50 million in the rail relocation and runway expansion project at the airport. According to a return-on-investment analysis done in 2012, the airport expansion will generate more than 2,000 new jobs, primarily in transportation, warehousing and manufacturing, by 2025. The RDA recently approved a $7.5 million matching grant to the City of Gary to improve road access to industrial sites near the airport to further encourage development.
