Lindbergh Terminal

The Lindbergh Terminal opened in 1962. Originally the terminal consisted of the Blue and Red Concourses (now Concourses E and F). Since 1962, the terminal has been expanded and renovated numerous times. Today’s Lindbergh Terminal bares little resemblance to the original terminal, except for its unique folded-plate roof design.

In 1996, the Minnesota Legislature implemented an aggressive expansion plan to meet future growth on site rather than moving the airport to a new site. A decade after this decision, the major expansion plan is completed but improvements are still being made to meet future airport needs.

North Addition of the NorthStar Crossing

The MAC extended the Lindbergh Terminal’s central shopping area to the north in 2004 and 2005. The two-story and 37,000 square foot expansion is centered around the intersection of C, D, & E Concourses. The first level of the expansion (ticketing level) is an extension of the Northstar Crossing retail mall as well as adding new public restrooms. A level above, on the mezzanine level, there is new space for MAC and airline tenant office space.

While the building extension opened in August of 2005, tenant spaces are opening in stages as they are finished. After all the concessions are open, the addition will offer four new food outlets and twelve new retail outlets.

Like the other new rotundas built at the Lindbergh Terminal in recent years, this new rotunda features a skylight and a floor mosaic. This floor mosaic is based off aeronautical charts of the Twin Cities area. A border of symbols used in aviation weather borders the mosaic while small snowflakes and sun images connect this mosaic to other mosaics around the airport terminal. The mosaic was designed by Twin Cities artists Andrea Myklebust and Stanton Gray Sears who also designed the other mosaics around the airport.

This project was originally started in August of 2001 and some prep work was done to the site. However, after the terrorist attacks of September 11th the project was suspended. The MAC reevaluated the project and included it in the airport’s 2004 Capital Improvement Plan. This project is part of the MAC’s plan to multi-year project to revamp almost all concessions at the airport.

In-line Baggage Screening System

Construction of an In-Line Baggage Screening Facility was included in the airport’s 2006-2012 Capital Improvement Program (CIP). Currently there are bulky baggage screening devices located in the ticketing lobby. These Explosive Detection Systems (EDS) machines take up valuable room that used to be allocated to the traveling public. The new screening facility removes the EDS machines from the ticketing lobby and moves them behind-the-scenes.

The new facility will provide space for seven CTX9000 baggage screening machines which together can handle 56 bags per minute. These machines will be hooked up to the baggage belts and will screen baggage en route to the airplanes. Under the proposed 2007-2013 Capital Improvement Program (CIP), the completion of the in-line baggage screening system will be delayed until 2010.

Baggage Claim Renovation

The Lindbergh Terminal’s baggage claim area has remained much the same for decades, even while the airport has grown considerably. The bag make-up area, the non-public area where bags are deposited and sorted, is under considerable pressure and in need of expansion and renovation. Public areas require work as well to make them less congested and up-to-date.

This project would install a new ceiling, new wall treatments, new carpeting, new lighting and upgrade the restrooms. Some baggage carousel work is required for the MSP Vision 2020 Plan and the baggage claim rehabilitation would be timed with that work. Under the proposed 2007-2013 Capital Improvement Program (CIP), the baggage claim renovation project will be deferred until 2010.

Terminal Expansion & Renovations

In 2004, Northwest Airlines proposed the MSP 2020 Vision Plan which expands both the Humphrey and Lindbergh Terminals to accommodate growth at the airport. For more information on proposed expansion of the Lindbergh Terminal, visit the Lindbergh Terminal 2020 Page.

Content originally written and published by Timothy Hannan.