Latest news with #GreatHallProject
CBS News
a day ago
- General
- CBS News
Hundreds of tiles in Denver International Airport's new Great Hall cracked and missing grout
If you've been to Denver International Airport lately, you might have noticed the brand-new tiling that's part of the Great Hall Project is cracked in many places, and some tiles are held together with nothing but tape. Airport officials say some of the damage is from construction equipment rolling over the new flooring, and other tiles, they say, may have been cracked by train vibrations or the Zamboni cleaning machine. But Patricia Watson, a construction management attorney, is convinced the problem is more serious, "It's actually cracked and failing everywhere," she says. "You can't walk through the airport and go 100 feet in any direction and not find grout falling or popping out." A frequent flyer, Watson first noticed scuff marks and scratches in the new flooring, "I think it was a terrible choice to put white tile in an airport with glitter in it. It looks filthy all the time." But she says, a poor color choice is one thing, poor construction is another. Watson is an attorney with nearly 30 years' experience in commercial real estate, including construction defect litigation. She says she's managed the construction of more than a million square feet of commercial office projects in Colorado and says whoever managed the tile installation in the airport's Great Hall botched the job. "It clearly didn't get adhered to the floor properly. There's definitely places where there's air under the tile. When somebody stands on that section, it doesn't have support under it, so it cracks the tile. And it's just going to get worse." She says everywhere grout is missing, the tile will eventually crack, "I think there was poor construction supervision, or it would not look like this right now. I counted 100 places on the 5th floor just on this side where it's cracked." Airport officials say they did their own count after CBS Colorado contacted them and found 266 cracked tiles out of just over 21,000 tiles installed on the 5th and 6th levels. That's about 1%, which they say is within industry standard. They released a statement saying, "The cracking can be caused by issues other than installation, which may include structural vibrations throughout the terminal from construction, train movement, passenger movement, foundation movement, cleaning equipment, maintenance equipment and other variables." Some of the damage, they say, is "due to heavy equipment and material deliveries, and replacement of these tiles was planned and budgeted with the program costs." Once work is complete, they said the tiles will be replaced. They insisted that "There are no product issues, warranty issues, or installer issues." Officials say they didn't install the tiles at the end of the project because it's more efficient to replace individual tiles than rip out temporary flooring and install new flooring. The tiles, they say, were imported from Italy and cost $242 per tile. They used "travel paths," they say, to minimize the cost of replacing them, and say their "contingency budget" will cover most of the costs, and repairs will not prolong the project. Until those repairs happen, Watson says, the flooring fiasco will be the first impression visitors have of Denver, "Should be the pride and joy of our city, not something that's embarrassing when you walk through the airport and you see 150 cracked tiles." Watson believes installers used the wrong type of grout, which she says could be the fault of the architect or the contractor. Airport officials say they recently changed to a different type of grout. They also say that, after an inspection by a third-party expert, they began videotaping the installation of every tile and have seen very few cracked tiles. With 83 million travelers a year, they say that they're continually making repairs, noting the old granite floor also saw cracking, and they are currently repairing concourse floors. The Great Hall project, which involves renovating the fifth and sixth levels of the terminal, began in 2018 and was supposed to be finished in 2021. The original $770 million price tag has nearly doubled to $1.3 billion. In 2019, CBS Colorado was the first to report on problems with concrete. That increased costs by millions of dollars and put the project years behind schedule. The airport switched contractors and now says it will be finished in 2027.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
DIA travelers happier with security screening since new checkpoint opened, airport says
DENVER (KDVR) — Customer satisfaction for security screening at Denver International Airport has improved since the opening of the airport's West Security Checkpoint in February 2024, the airport revealed Thursday. DIA said its score for 'ease going through security screening' improved by 13% to 4.2 out of 5, since the opening of the new checkpoint, while its 'waiting time: security screening' score rose 19% to a 4.18 out of 5. Measles exposure sites now include Denver, Glendale, Windsor grocery stores: List The data was collected from the DIA's Airport Service Quality quarterly service results. The survey measures passenger satisfaction across a number of airport experiences, DIA said. 'The ASQ data shows that DEN's Great Hall Project is already improving the overall experience of our airport. Once the East Checkpoint opens in August, we fully expect that passengers will find the process of going through security to be even easier,' DIA CEO Phil Washington said in a statement. The DIA's overall satisfaction score is 4.06 out of 5, as of March 2025, the airport said. The survey for overall satisfaction includes the experience of arriving at the airport, the check-in process, the security screening, border/passport control, the shopping and dining experience, cleanliness and comfort of gate areas, wayfinding, Wi-Fi, bathroom cleanliness and overall airport atmosphere. Littleton man missing since 2024 located in Colorado River nearly full year later Washington said he expects the satisfaction score to increase further once the airport is finished with the final phase of its Great Hall construction program, which involves a full build-out of the Jeppesen Terminal. 'By 2027, when Great Hall construction will be complete, the experience of going through security, meeting loved ones, and enjoying the Jeppeson Terminal's art, dining, and retail options will be transformative,' Washington said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBS News
28-02-2025
- CBS News
Denver International Airport celebrates 30th anniversary
Thirty years ago, Continental Airlines Flight 34 left Stapleton International Airport as the last commercial flight to leave the airport. Overheard in the control tower, the pilot on the plane said, "We will miss this place. A lot of memories." Its replacement was an airport set in an area many locals couldn't find on a map. "They say it was out in Kansas," said Stephen Lee, who is the Director of Emergency Management & Communication at Denver International Airport. Steve was one of the workers who moved from Stapleton International Airport to Denver International Airport on the snowy day on Feb. 28, 1995. "When we moved out here, we were made fun of for building this airport that was huge in the middle of nowhere," he said. Mike Carlson, who is the Senior Manager Airport Airside Operations at Denver International Airport, remembers the feeling of seeing United Flight 1474 from Colorado Springs, becoming the first plane to land at the new airport. "Excitement. Definite excitement," Carlson recalled. Both have seen the ups and downs in their 30 years at the airport. Shortly after the opening celebrations, the airport's baggage system, which was touted as the most advanced system in the world, failed. It was decommissioned in 2005. "It definitely gave the airport a black eye, and it never really got going," Carlson said. They've seen the airport expand from the tents in the main terminal to the Westin Hotel attached to the main terminal. They have also heard the conspiracy theories surrounding the airport, like the secret tunnels. "I just shake my head, you know. There are no conspiracy theories out here," Carlson said. What is true is the renovations at the airport through the Great Hall Project, by adding new state-of-the-art security checkpoints, helping to serve 100 million passengers annually in the near future. "We're going to hit that 100 million passengers a year mark before we know it, and the only way we can do that is by continuing constantly to improve our system and to grow the airport," Lee said. With retirement on the runway, Steve and Mile are proud of their 30-year career of serving at the 6th busiest airport in the world. "I always tell people when they come to work here, appreciate it because, this is really a fun place to work," Lee said.
CBS News
19-02-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Denver International Airport unveils final phase of Great Hall renovation, lays out future projects
Construction at Denver International Airport's Great Hall could soon be nearing its end. And while plenty of other renovation projects are now in their early stages, airport officials say those won't have nearly the same impact as the Great Hall renovation in the Jeppesen Terminal. DIA CEO Phil Washington unveiled plans and renderings for the final phase of the Great Hall Project on Tuesday, saying the remodeled terminal will showcase "the spirit of Colorado" and better serve passengers. The airport says work will be completed on time and on budget in 2027, but the cost and timeline for completion have changed several times over the last few years. The total cost of the project is now expected to be below $1.3 billion, Washington said. "It's not like we can close a whole wing of the airport and do this work," Washington said at a news conference Tuesday. "We have to do it while we're seeing our numbers increase." Renovations on the main terminal began in 2018 and entered phase three in 2021. In 2023, the city auditor released a report warning that the airport risked overspending on the project. The airport hired a new contractor in 2020 after terminating the previous contract. "There will be very few customer-facing impacts when we finish the Great Hall," Washington said on Tuesday. Among those future projects at DIA include the construction of a seventh runway, extending Concourse C West by adding 11 gates, and improvements to Peña Boulevard -- the main 11-mile road that connects Interstate 70 from the rest of the city to the airport. That's currently undergoing an environmental study from federal officials and nothing can move forward locally until that's complete, Washington said. Earlier this month, Washington said the congestion on the road is "bad, and it's getting worse." Since the airport opened in 1995, traffic on Peña has increased by 80%, traffic studies show. In 2023, the airport served just under 78 million passengers. That number is projected to rise to 120 million by 2045, airport officials have said. And residential and commercial development along the route has added to the congestion. Traffic times have tripled in recent years according to a study of traffic patterns along the corridor. Additionally, he wants to build a multi-story 17,500-vehicle rental car facility closer to the airport itself to replace the facilities off Peña Boulevard on 144 acres generally between North Gun Club Road and Jackson Gap, which Washington says will help make travel easier and decrease the airport's carbon footprint. Plans are also in place to build more baggage carousels and expand the international arrivals area, as international travel to and from DIA increases. Finally, Washington says the airport has 14 new train cars that will eventually replace the current train cars that move people within the airport. "It's pure chaos when the train goes down," Washington earlier this month. "I don't like it." Asked on Tuesday whether Washington feared potential funding cuts from the Trump administration, Washington said, "I hope not." "The completion phase budget is mostly local funding," he said. "We are using some federal dollars on things like our baggage modernization but our hope is a major hub in the national airspace that there's no impact on us for funding." He went on to say he has not received any indication from the White House that the federal funding is at risk.
