Archinect - News

NYC will convert JFK Hilton hotel into supportive housing

2023-12-28T13:44:00-05:00

A plan to transform the former Hilton Hotel at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City into supportive housing has been announced as the inaugural effort of the important new Housing Our Neighbors with Dignity Act (HONDA) program by Mayor Eric Adams.

Aufgang Architects will be in charge of overhauling the 350-room hotel into the renamed Baisley Pond Park Residences, a 318-unit residential development aimed at low-income and formerly homeless individuals with rents ranging between $784 per month for studios to $1,493 for two-bedroom apartments. They say their work will be completed in just 21 months thanks to the hotel’s compatible layout, which allows for a minimally invasive slate of amendments to its internal wall structures.

The result will be a life-changing space for residents, complete with all-electric heating and cooling systems, multiple community/computer rooms, space for the RiseBoro Community Partnership’s on-site support staff, a kitchen serviced by the ...

New $4.2 billion JFK Terminal 6 expansion officially breaks ground

2023-02-27T18:29:00-05:00

New York Governor Kathy Hochul and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey recently celebrated the groundbreaking of the $4.2 billion Terminal 6 project at JFK Airport.

This is the final piece of the JFK Vision Plan, the airport’s major, multi-year initiative to redevelop, modify, and expand existing facilities and infrastructure. This news follows the announcement of the terminal’s financing and approval in November 2022.

Rendering courtesy The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

The scheme is a public-private partnership between the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and a consortium of financial stakeholders named JFK Millennium Partners.

The new terminal will be developed in two phases, with the first new gates opening in 2026 and construction set to complete in 2028. It will offer an anchor for passenger travel on JFK’s north side, spanning the sites of the former Terminal 6 and the existing Terminal 7. The 50-year-old Terminal 7 facility will be demolished...

New York announces funding and construction timeline for new Terminal 6 expansion at JFK

2022-11-22T16:57:00-05:00

A few months after ground was broken on the $9.5 billion New Terminal One project, New York Governor Kathy Hochul has announced the financing and approval of a new $4.2 billion Terminal 6 at JFK Airport that will serve as the final piece of the airport’s multi-year transformation upon completion in 2028.

The terminal will be developed in two phases beginning next year, with the first stage expected to open in 2026. It will have space for 10 gates in its 1.2-million-square-foot plan, with typical retail and dining options included along with an offering of touchless check-in technology, biometric security controls, and the space to accommodate for regulatory changes and further technology upgrades in the future.

JFK will demolish the aging Terminal 7 following the conclusion of the first phase of construction, and its current tenant British Airways will be relocated inside the newly-modernized Terminal 8, th...

JFK's New Terminal One project officially breaks ground

2022-09-19T18:31:00-04:00

First announced in December 2021, the privately-funded, $9.5 billion New Terminal One project at JFK International Airport officially broke ground earlier this month.

The 2.4-million-square-foot international terminal will become JFK’s largest upon completion. Construction will occur in phases on the sites of the current Terminals 1 and 2 as well as the former Terminal 3.

A group of firms, including Carlyle, JLC Infrastructure, and Ullico, are among the private partners behind the undertaking, which bills Gensler in charge of design and AECOM Tishman as the general contractor.

Previously on Archinect: New York Governor Hochul announces $9.5 billion project for new Terminal 1 at JFK

"We're doing it better, because right now you go through a place like Penn Station and the former LaGuardia and the former airports, you just wanted to look down. You shuffled along, you know, just kind of in the masses. You didn't have any reason to feel optimistic, to put a smile on your face," New Yo...

New York Governor Hochul announces $9.5 billion project for new Terminal 1 at JFK

2021-12-13T18:03:00-05:00

John F. Kennedy International Airport is about to get some much-needed renovations thanks to a privately funded investment. Governor Kathy Hochul announced Monday that private partners will be investing $9.5 billion to overhaul Terminal 1, Terminal 2 and the old Terminal 3 at the airport.

Hochul said an agreement was made between the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and The New Terminal One group, who will be the financial backers of the project. A new 2.4-million-square-foot facility will be built in phases, with the project set to create more than 10,000 jobs. It will feature 23 international gates, making it the largest international terminal at JFK. This is the fourth major terminal project that’s part of a complete transformation of JFK into a “world-class” airport.

Image: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

Construction of the new terminal is set to begin in mid-2022 and is expected to be fully completed by 2030. The design-build team is led by AECOM Tishman and Gensler.

"As we recover from this pandemic, I want to ensure that everyone traveling to New York has a welcoming and streamlined experience, and that New Yorkers have the modernized transportation hubs they deserve," Governor Hochul said. "The time to get large infrastructure projects done ...

JFK Airport invites ideas for new Central Hub, part of greater $13bn makeover

2019-07-19T16:02:00-04:00

[...] the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is issuing a Request for Information for the design and development of JFK Central, an approximately 14-acre, mixed-use space at the epicenter of the redeveloped John F. Kennedy International Airport. This new site offers a blank canvas to create a centrally-located commercial and recreational public space to serve today's travelers and employees, and capitalizes on the broader transformation of JFK currently underway.

"Airports are the front door to New York which is why it is so important that we transform JFK Airport into an innovative, modern, and accommodating space for domestic and international travelers," New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said in his announcement of the Request for Information for JFK Central Hub, part of the greater $13 billion airport redevelopment.

"We are moving ahead with a $13 billion transformation plan that will fundamentally reimagine the airport for the 21st century and as part of that effort JFK Central will create a more unified airport and further solidify New York's position as the premier entry point into our country for the rest of the world."

The RFI can be accessed here (PDF).

PHOTOS: The TWA Hotel at JFK is officially open!

2019-05-15T18:14:00-04:00

The much-anticipated rebirth of Eero Saarinen’s historic TWA Flight Center at JFK Airport is complete. The TWA Hotel officially opened on Wednesday, more than two years after the project broke ground in Queens and over 18 years since the iconic 1962 terminal shuttered. Developed by MCR and Morse Development, the two six-story crescent-shaped buildings contain 512 rooms, a rooftop infinity pool and observation deck, event space, food hall, luxury fitness center, and retro cocktail bar.

Photo courtesy of TWA Hotel/David Mitchell

TWA Hotel at Saarinen's iconic Flight Center to open in May

2019-02-08T18:14:00-05:00

It’s official: The TWA Hotel will start taking reservations on February 14, in anticipation of a soft opening on May 15. [...] The hotel’s opening will be the culmination of years of work to revive Eero Saarinen’s beloved midcentury landmark. The TWA Flight Center, a stunning example of Space Age architecture, closed in 2001, and has largely been hidden from public view since then, save for a few tours and events here and there.

The TWA Hotel at JFK Airport previously on Archinect.

New details emerge for JFK Airport's $13 billion revamp

2018-10-04T18:19:00-04:00

Gov. Andrew Cuomo unveiled several new details about the upcoming transformation of [JFK Airport,] most notably the creation of two new terminals that will replace some of the existing terminals, and rise on the northern and southern end of the complex. The cost of this revamp has gone up from the $10 billion estimate that accompanied the first announcement about the redevelopment in early 2017 to the current estimate of $13 billion.

From rotary phones to martini bars, the new TWA Hotel at JFK Airport travels back to 1962

2018-04-24T11:42:00-04:00

It was 1962 all over again at New York’s John F. Kennedy airport yesterday. After three years in development, the public got a first glimpse of the highly anticipated TWA Hotel—and it’s groovy. With the Eero Saarinen-designed TWA Flight Center as its centerpiece and spiritual core, the 512-room hotel is poised to be a shrine to the so-called golden age of travel.

Connected to Eero Saarinen's TWA Flight Center, the new TWA Hotel plays up its architectural history — from the authentic Saarinen-designed Womb Chairs in each guest room to the rotary telephones. Certainly, the four-star plus hotel is equipped with contemporary amenities, like 512 “ultra-quiet” guest rooms with soundproof glass, conference space for up to 1,400 people, a museum devoted to the Jet Age, and a rooftop observation deck and pool, to name a few.

TWA Hotel behind Saarinen's iconic JFK terminal tops out

2017-12-15T18:13:00-05:00

That didn’t take long: Just about a year after celebrating the groundbreaking of the TWA Hotel, the developer behind the project, MCR, has announced that it’s topped out. The hotel will complement—and connect to—Eero Saarinen’s iconic 1962 TWA Flight Center. The whole shebang is on track to open in early 2019 as the TWA Hotel.

JFK’s TWA Hotel on track to open in 18 months

2017-09-29T11:29:00-04:00

MCR Development officially launched the mid-century modern TWA Lounge on the 86th floor of One World Trade Center on Thursday and provided a deeper look into plans to convert Eero Saarinen’s historic TWA flight center at JFK Airport into a hotel, event space, and dining destination. According to MCR’s CEO Tyler Morse, construction of the hotel is on schedule; it will go vertical on Monday, top out in December, and have its curtainwall applied by January.

If everything remains on schedule, the project is expected to open in 18 months.

NY Governor Cuomo selects Mott MacDonald and Grimshaw-led team to implement $10-billion JFK Vision Plan

2017-09-25T13:26:00-04:00

[...] announced the Port Authority's selection of a Mott MacDonald-led consulting team [...] for the redevelopment of John F. Kennedy Airport. This announcement is the next major step in the Governor's plan to transform JFK Airport - which welcomes more international passengers to the United States than any other U.S. airport -- into a unified, world-class operation to accommodate substantial forecasted passenger growth, while helping to further boost the New York City regional economy.

Image via JFK Vision Plan

Without mentioning specific details at this point, the announcement from Governor Cuomo lays out the general scope of this ambitious airport redevelopment project based on the January report from the Airport Advisory Panel, including "the creation of a seamless, interconnected terminal system, world-class customer service, a vastly overhauled roadway access network to reduce time-consuming bottlenecks, enhancements to JFK AirTrain together with the expansion of rail mass transit with the focus on developing a one-seat ride to and from the airport, development of modern cargo facilities and improvements to aeronautical infrastructure."

Image via JFK Vision Plan

The Mott MacDonald and Grimshaw Architects-led team also includes a variety of expert firms such as TranSolutions, Harris Miller Miller & Hanson, VJ Associates, ACB Architects, EnTech Engineering, Naik Consulting, Reichman Frankle, and Holmes Keogh.

Advisory Panel issues report on improving JFK

2017-01-04T18:21:00-05:00

“Despite its importance to the region, JFK is not the airport passengers expect when arriving in one of the greatest cities in the world,” states the Airport Advisory Panel in their new report to the Governor. That’s a bit of an understatement. As many a traveller knows, JFK isn’t in the best shape. Hence the need for the report, which notes the costs of failing to act. By the mid-2020s, three million more passengers will head into JFK than its facilities can handle. In monetary terms, that amounts to about $140 million in annual wages, $400 million in annual sales, and 2,500 jobs—per each million not accommodated.

So the Panel put together a set of recommendations including:

Modernizing the airport’s terminals, starting with the oldest, and planning all future redevelopment around connections between terminals. The Panel recommends working together with private operators to fund the renovations.
Improving the airport’s roadways and expanding parking.
Expanding taxiways to improve air...

'TWA Hotel' hopes to revive Saarinen's iconic terminal at JFK

2016-12-07T13:01:00-05:00

water would bubble again in Isamu Noguchi’s green marble fountain in the Ambassador Lounge, softly masking the tik-a-tik-a-tik-a-tik-a-tik chatter of a Solari di Udine split-flap display board announcing flight departures and arrivals [...] The architects of the hotel project are Beyer Blinder Belle and Lubrano Ciavarra Architects. Beyer Blinder Belle was responsible for the sumptuous restoration of Grand Central Terminal in Midtown Manhattan.

The $265 million TWA Hotel project, slated to open in late 2018, would be connected to Saarinen's Trans World Flight Center and Terminal 5 through tubes that used to guide passengers from TWF to their aircraft. As reported by the Times, the Hotel plan has been hailed by preservationists for its restoration of the terminal, which will require developer MCR to "remediate asbestos throughout the headhouse and rebuild or update mechanical systems." However, preservationists aren't so jazzed about the hotel's six stories, one fearing its height would "effectively imprison the headhouse, both reducing the amount of natural light entering it and severely restricting the outward views from the interior.”

For more on Saarinen's terminal and happenings at JFK:

Eero Saarinen's dormant JFK terminal to become Jet Blue hotel

2015-09-18T12:33:00-04:00

JetBlue and MCR will build hotel rooms from the ground up next to the terminal and refurbish the interior of the building to become the property’s main entrance. [...] It is to have 505 rooms, 40,000 square feet of meeting space, up to eight eateries and an observation deck. The old terminal will serve as the lobby, with the rest of the hotel set back from it in a new building.

Jet Blue's hotel will be JFK's first, finally utilizing Saarinen's masterpiece after 14 years (and counting) of vacancy.

For more news at JFK:

Fancy $48M animal terminal to open in JFK Airport next year

2015-07-21T15:20:00-04:00

When a new terminal called The Ark opens next year, 178,000 sq.ft of posh amenities will include everything from a resort with suites that have large flat-screen TVs, to climate-controlled stalls, showers, massages, a private space especially set aside for penguin mating, a paw-shaped dog swimming pool, a jungle for cats made of live trees...and stables full of the finest hay a horse could hope for...But how much will this cost you? Don't expect flea motel rates.

JetBlue tapped as prospective developer for JFK TWA terminal

2015-04-16T17:34:00-04:00

[JetBlue Airways] reportedly wants to get into the hotel business by partnering with New York-based hotel developer MCR Development to turn the landmarked terminal into a 500-room hotel. The deal isn't final—the parties are in 'advanced negotiations'—so things could still fall apart...The Port Authority previously chose hotelier Andre Balazs as the developer, but Balazs backed out after realizing how long the project would take. He told the [WSJ] his company had 'more interesting opportunities.'

Previously: Hotelier Andre Balazs to convert JFK’s historic TWA terminal into a hotel and conference center

Hotelier, Andre Balazs, to convert JFK’s historic TWA terminal into a hotel and conference center

2013-09-09T19:55:00-04:00

The Eero Saarinen-designed terminal will be transformed into a hotel and conference center, along with food and beverage offerings, retail space, a spa and fitness center, meeting facilities and a flight museum. “It is a great honor to be entrusted with the preservation and revitalization of this masterpiece by my personal architectural hero,” said Balazs. He added that he’s looking forward to the approval of his final proposal by the PA board, but didn’t comment on a specific time frame.