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The price tag for Lehigh Valley International Airport''s long-awaited transportation hub came in $2 million higher than expected, but airport officials Tuesday decided to forge ahead with a project that will now cost more than $5 million. The Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority chose a low bid of $5.1 million from W.R. Schultz Inc. of Emmaus to build a one-stop shop outside the main terminal designed to keep travelers from wandering the LVIA grounds to find rental cars, taxis or buses. While the sticker price came in well above estimates, that the authority unanimously approved it shows how far airport finances have progressed in the past year. Last year at this time, all capital projects were on hold while airport executives sold assets to make the final payment on a $26 million court judgment against the authority for taking a developer''s land in the 1990s. For passengers, the project will help shorten what can be a long trek to a rental car or taxi stand. But is that worth $5 million? When you are being compared to Newark and Philadelphia [airports], the passenger experience matters, said Charles Everett Jr., authority executive director. Walking a half-mile to the terminal isn''t a very good experience.Everett explained that four bids ranging from $5.1 million to $5.9 million were higher than expected, in part because the project''s winter schedule forced contractors to expect higher costs for materials that typically increase when plants close for the season. The project is scheduled to begin in September and be ready for passengers as early as late January. It includes demolishing the vacant former airport firehouse, extending the end of the main terminal to add a waiting lounge and adding a circular driveway for cars and buses. The rental car lot — now several hundred yards from baggage claim — will be moved closer to the terminal on the site of the firehouse, and a series of shelters where people can wait will be constructed. The clear plastic and steel shelters will be accompanied by covered walkways that will protect passengers from rain and snow while they walk to the terminal. Because the current parking areas are so far away that they can''t be seen from the terminal, Everett said passengers often get lost wandering through a seemingly endless collection of lots. One of our biggest complaints was from people walking 1,000 paces in the wind, rain or snow, Everett said. This takes care of that. The project not only puts the LANTA bus station next to the terminal, but for the first time also moves the Trans-Bridge bus station onto the airport grounds from its location a mile away, said J. Michael Dowd, authority board chairman. What makes Lehigh Valley attractive is that it''s much more convenient than the hassle you have in Newark and Philly, Dowd said. Furthering that experience is where we can have an edge. A big reason the authority can sustain such a hike in project costs is because most of the money won''t be coming from its $21 million annual budget. A state grant will cover $1.75 million of it, but the authority will get $1.8 million by tapping a $2 per day fee it added last year to all rental car costs, and $484,000 from a $4.50 fee every passenger pays when buying a ticket for a flight. The higher cost does mean the authority will have to dip into those fees longer — up to five years for the rental fee, Everett said. The remaining $751,000 will come from the authority''s general fund. Bids not chosen were: $5.4 million by Bracy Construction of Allentown, $5.8 million by Boyle Construction of Allentown and $5.9 million by L.R. Costanzo of Scranton. Waiting until next summer was not considered because the authority''s past financial problems had already delayed the project for nearly two years and the authority is required to use the state grant soon. |
