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First Look: Atlanta Airport's Dramatic Terminal Overhaul

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$200 million redo could make arriving at the airport a totally different experience

The world’s busiest/most popular/most visited/whatever airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, could look dramatically different soon, as a batch of new renderings proves.

HOK — a global design, architecture, engineering, and planning firm — is leading a team that's designing $200 million in improvements to the airport's terminally hectic domestic passenger terminal. It's part of a $6 billion, 20-year expansion and modernization planned for Atlanta's famous Flughafen.

HOK officials tell Curbed that construction will begin later this year. They provided the renderings below as a preview of what airport patrons can expect. No timeline for completion was provided.

Per officials, a few key elements of the design include:

  • Two 864-foot-long canopies will cover curbside pick-up and drop-off areas, redefining the character of the building as a 21st-century air terminal and protecting passengers from the elements.
  • At curbside, travelers immediately connect with Atlanta’s green space and city parks through fritted glass panels that depict the forested landscape of the region.
  • Inside, passengers will be greeted in the redesigned light-filled atrium featuring a park-like setting, lush with plants and a large circular skylight.
  • The design accommodates both the curb-to-gate weekly business travelers and the leisure traveler.
  • Expansive windows flood check-in areas with natural light and intuitive wayfinding help to improve circulation.

For further exploration, here's a symphonic new video that helps put the plans in context.

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport

6000 N Terminal Pkwy, Atlanta, GA 30320 (800) 897-1910 Visit Website