Dive Brief:
- Red tape and staffing shortages have delayed the construction of a new $300 million concourse at Jacksonville International Airport in Florida, Greg Willis, spokesperson for the Jacksonville Aviation Authority, confirmed to Construction Dive.
- The JAA planned to break ground later this year and complete work on Concourse B in 2025. Now, the authority anticipates work beginning the first quarter of 2024 with completion by the close of 2026.
- Due to environmental assessments and staffing shortages at the Federal Aviation Administration, the JAA has faced delays in approvals required to begin construction, Willis told Construction Dive in an email. There is no set date for work to begin.
Dive Insight:
The JAA did not provide details about what types of environmental reviews are holding up the project.
Jacobs Engineering will serve as general contractor on the Concourse B effort, according to the Jacksonville Daily Record. The JAA also selected Balfour Beatty to purchase steel for the project, with a contract including a $24.57 million steel package for the new concourse and $2.6 million for security checkpoint renovations, according to the Jacksonville Daily Record.
In a meeting with the authority board Finance and Audit Committee on Sept. 15, JAA CFO Ross Jones said Phase 1 of the project is on schedule, but phases 2 and 3 won’t begin until summer 2024, the Jacksonville Daily Record reported.
The JAA had previously postponed work on Concourse B — designed to have six gates — in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, the airport has two concourses with 20 total gates.