T.F. Green Airport plans $100-million cargo terminal
The travel experience for packages flying into Rhode Island T.F. Green International Airport could soon get a lot nicer.
Airport officials have begun planning a new $100-million cargo terminal in an area on the southeast side of the airfield that is now home to several parking lots.
The proposed 131,000-square-foot terminal complex would replace the 80-year-old hangar north of the runways on Airport Road.
And while it won't be as visible to travelers as the new $10-million Roman-inspired bathrooms in the passenger terminal, the new cargo facility would boost operations for FedEx and UPS, which now fly around five planes per day into Green.
More:Breeze says PVD to LAX flights are back on again starting in May
Those two companies would occupy separate portions of the new terminal, with FedEx taking up 92,000 square feet and UPS 39,300 square feet.
"The existing cargo facilities are inadequate for the current activities that are there," said Rhode Island Airport Corp. spokesman John Goodman. "FedEx in particular is conducting a lot of their sorting outside in all weather conditions. So this isn't strictly a volume issue. It is a matter of replacing an inadequate facility for modern needs."
Dawn Mineker, vice president of engineering and architecture, said T.F. Green expects to receive one or two more additional cargo flights per day when the new terminal is built.
More:New developments in the Ocean State: Apartments, subsidies and stadiums
Where would the new cargo terminal be located?
The new terminal is planned for a piece of airport property by long-term parking lot E and Strawberry Field Road. It would have loading docks for tractor-trailers, which would get to it by an access road from Post Road.
To shield the houses on the other side of Strawberry Field Road from truck and terminal noise, the airport is building a wall.
On Tuesday the airport hosted an open house at the Warwick City Hall annex in Apponaug to show residents renderings and answer questions about the terminal project.
Design work on the terminal has begun, and the Airport Corporation expects to file a draft environmental review next month.
More:The EPA fined a ProvPort tenant for how it handled chemicals. Now its tax deal may be at risk.
How would the new terminal be financed and when would it open?
The corporation plans to finance the new terminal with a bond and federal aviation grants. The amount of borrowing will depend on the final cost and how much federal money comes in.
If the project makes it through permitting, design and financing as expected, the airport hopes to start construction in September 2024 and open the terminal two years later.
There are no immediate plans for the old Airport Road area where cargo now gets offloaded, but once cargo operations move out, the airport is likely to look at expanding facilities for general aviation and corporate hangars.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Rhode Island T.F. Green Airport plans $100-million cargo terminal
