Four prequalify for $3.6bn New York airport

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has selected four consortia to bid for the $3.6 billion redevelopment of the central terminal building (CTB) at LaGuardia Airport (LGA), one of three major airports in the New York metropolitan area.

The shortlisted consortia competing to design, build, finance, operate and maintain the airport’s central terminal building comprise:

– Aerostar New York Holdings (Highstar Capital/ Aeropuerto de Cancun);

– LaGuardia Gateway Partners (Vantage Airport Group/ Skanska Infrastructure Development/ Meridiam Infrastructure);

– LGAlliance (Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets/ Lend Lease Investments);

– LGA Central Terminal Consortium (a joint venture between ADP Management & TAV Havalimanlari Holding/ Goldman Sachs Infrastructure Partners).

To view the consortia's complete composition, please click here.

Redevelopment will involve demolishing the existing 835,000 square foot-CTB and replacing it with a 1.3 million square foot, 35-gate terminal building, according to the airport operator’s website. Its surrounding infrastructure which includes frontage roads, aprons, utilities, a central heating and refrigeration plant, and other support facilities will also be replaced. 

According to the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) the Port Authority issued on October 26, 2012, the winning bidder will “operate and maintain the New CTB for a specified term,” which will be determined during the Request for Proposal (RFP) process. The financing terms will also be determined during the RFP process, a Port Authority spokesperson said without specifying when that process would begin.

As one of the New York metro area’s primary airports, LaGuardia handles significant passenger traffic and is a major source of economic activity for the New York City region. According to the Port Authority website, the airport employs approximately 10,000 people and contributes more than $13.6 billion in economic activity. In 2012, LGA served 25.7 million passengers and is forecast to handle 34 million by 2030.

Financing LaGuardia airport’s upgrade using private funds comes on the heels of another milestone for the Port Authority – a $1.5 billion public-private partnership deal to replace the Goethals Bridge, an 85-year old bridge connecting New York and New Jersey announced in April this year.

Founded in 1921, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey receives no tax revenue from either the State of New York or New Jersey or from the City of New York. The agency raises the necessary funds for the improvement, construction or acquisition of its facilities primarily on its own credit.

In addition to LaGuardia, the Port Authority’s portfolio of airports includes John F. Kennedy International Airport and Stewart International Airport in New York; and Newark Liberty International Airport and Teterboro Airport in New Jersey.

It also builds, operates and maintains ground, rail, and seaport facilities and owns and manages the 16-acre World Trade Center site, where construction crews are building One World Trade Center.