Nashville International Airport Development thread

[Mr_Bond]

I hope I speak for all of us when I say a big "Thank you!" to @Chato_reyes for the intel on what's going on inside BNA and to @Sean blackdog for the intel on new arrivals and departures.  By my lights, you both add a lot to the threads about the airport and I, for one, am appreciative.  Yes, many others contribute in valuable ways, but I've noticed you two as relative newcomers who make a big impact.

[Chato_reyes]

It's a blessing and a curse I fly at max every 10 days. Tomorrow will be my third trip there this week. I appreciate the endorsement and I'm glad to provide updates as long as I'm there. The staff at Barista Parlor recognize me which is beginning to become a problem because their chocolate muffins are quite good...

[markhollin]

Little Harpeth Brewing will open a 1,883 sq. ft. facility in Terminal B of Nashville International Airport. A permit for $784,000 has been issued for for Wellspring Builders to begin the work. 

More behind the Nashville Post paywall here:

https://www.nashvillepost.com/business/development/permit-patrol-26-july-2021/article_4c6d052e-ebf8-11eb-a10a-971261266a71.html

[glamdring269]

3 hours ago, markhollin said:

Little Harpeth Brewing will open a 1,883 sq. ft. facility in Terminal B of Nashville International Airport. A permit for $784,000 has been issued for for Wellspring Builders to begin the work. 

More behind the Nashville Post paywall here:

https://www.nashvillepost.com/business/development/permit-patrol-26-july-2021/article_4c6d052e-ebf8-11eb-a10a-971261266a71.html

 

Any estimate on when those terminal separation walls will come down? Hopefully  sooner than later. Hate not being able to walk over to A/B when the vast majority of my flights are with Southwest.

[downtownresident]

4 hours ago, glamdring269 said:

 

Any estimate on when those terminal separation walls will come down? Hopefully  sooner than later. Hate not being able to walk over to A/B when the vast majority of my flights are with Southwest.

They’ll come down in 2023 when the new international gates, central security screening area, retail mall, and satellite concourse opens. 

[downtownresident]

The permit for Puckett's was issued on the 23rd. They are building a full service restaurant with a grab and go section in the D Concourse. Here's a link: https://epermits.nashville.gov/download.aspx?id=586035

Here is the location:

And a rendering:

[LA_TN]

9 hours ago, glamdring269 said:

 

Any estimate on when those terminal separation walls will come down? Hopefully  sooner than later. Hate not being able to walk over to A/B when the vast majority of my flights are with Southwest.

As @downtownresidentnoted, September 2023 will be the opening of the new Lobby and International Arrivals Facility, Satellite Concourse, and the Hilton branded hotel. That is when it will be possible to walk from A/B to C/D again. A long 3 years

[markhollin]

A story on how busy the airport is becoming again happened to mention that groundbreaking fro the Terminal Hilton Hotel will break ground in September.

More at The Tennessean here:

https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2021/07/22/nashville-bna-airport-sees-more-passengers-covid-19-variants-threaten/8046007002/

[Bark At The Sun]

On 7/26/2021 at 9:30 PM, LA_TN said:

As @downtownresidentnoted, September 2023 will be the opening of the new Lobby and International Arrivals Facility, Satellite Concourse, and the Hilton branded hotel. That is when it will be possible to walk from A/B to C/D again. A long 3 years

So, is Popeyes closed for good?  I primarily fly Southwest 4-5 times a year and have missed that over the last year or so.   Didn't care for their breakfast, but liked that you could pick up an affordable fried chicken dinner at 6am before a flight.

[Chato_reyes]

1 hour ago, Bark At The Sun said:

So, is Popeyes closed for good?  I primarily fly Southwest 4-5 times a year and have missed that over the last year or so.   Didn't care for their breakfast, but liked that you could pick up an affordable fried chicken dinner at 6am before a flight.

Long gone, and inaccessible from C/D gates. BK lounge, 400 degrees, and tootsies are your best shot at fried chicken for breakfast. Party Fowl will be next to open. Pyramids has a breakfast menu but I don't recall what's on it, I will check on Saturday or Monday when I'm there.

[LA_TN]

Burger King is open in Concourse D and Kijiji Coffee is open in Concourse A

[Chato_reyes]

For some perspective, I flew in today from MYR and it was a zoo. TSA wait times from noon-3p have been upwards of 3 hours, and every gate has a plane at it. There were enough people in front of me at chick fil a to fill a CRJ and the sit down places had waits of an hour. Compare that with 3 years ago and half the B concourse was dark. The direct flight on southwest last Saturday was nearly full and the return flight was at least 100 of 143. Through all the waiting, it's nice to see this kind of economic recovery!

Now to BNA - The re-located Radio Road/Fly Babies store next to Tailgate and formerly BK in C is walled up and there's no new signage. 

[markhollin]

[Sean blackdog]

Today this evening from Facebook BNA. 
 

 Why is the Departures level roadway closed on weeknights between 9 p.m. and 4 a.m.? Because heavy metal is in the air above!  The light-colored roofing shown in the first photo is being added to the section of canopy that spans Terminal Drive, which means it would be right over your head. 

 Each sheet weighs more than 230 pounds, and a bundle of 25 weighs 5,850 pounds! That's why we route traffic to the Arrivals level (beneath the Departures level road) at night: for your safety. 
 

Picture from tower crane. 

[Chato_reyes]

Last flight for awhile (could be 4 weeks, could be 3 months) and walked the C/D gates. All food outlets were busy, especially Pyramids and Swett's. The Radio Road space was being prepped for a vinyl wrap advertising the next tenant, but I couldn't stay long enough to watch it go up. I saw a half dozen workers leave the empty shell next to Tootsie's, demo work was going on but no sign of a new tenant. Nothing new with the Vino Volo space, not even signage. 

The Hudson News at the confluence of the C and D gates is not long for this world as illustrated in the first two pictures, tape on the floor outlining where sheetrock will eventually go was evident. 

BK was closed by 8:30 again, but Party Fowl signage has been installed. One last pic through the plastic sheet behind the cage for good measure. If I had to guess I'd say they should be open by Labor Day weekend.

The future Puckett's space has just a few tables and chairs, an ATM and a fuel rod vending machine for now. It's going to be a tight squeeze based on the floorplan provided by @downtownresident, I don't think the architects factored in carry on bags and strollers in their design.

 

[markhollin]

Tennessee Tribune, a black-owned local newspaper, will have two retail slots with a collective 3,000 sq. ft. of space within the updated terminal. 

Tennessee Tribune Store will “reflect the history of the newspaper in design and architecture while also serving the mainstream needs of the traveler.”  

The two Tennessee Tribune Store locations will offer the products of more than 40 Nashville-based African-American vendors providing snacks, jewelry, tea, gourmet coffee blends, beverages, wines and spirits, HBCU collegiate apparel, celebrity published works from local authors, traditional souvenirs, and items from the Winfrey Family Foods line.

The first store will open in the fall and will be located between Terminal C and D in the Southwest Airlines Hub. The second store will be pre-security and will open in the spring of 2022. It will be open to the public (and not require a ticket for entry).

More behind the Nashville Post paywall here:

https://www.nashvillepost.com/business/education/of-note-4-august-2021/article_e225962c-f494-11eb-b16e-8bf65d56bbee.html

 

[Chato_reyes]

Well now we know who will replace Hudson News!

Unrelated - https://www.wkrn.com/news/record-number-of-weapons-detected-at-bna-after-new-gun-law-takes-effect/ Almost one gun per day in July is crazy.

(Edited to show correct story)

Edited August 4, 2021 by Chato_reyes
Updated link

[Sean blackdog]

Today this evening from Facebook BNA. 
 

Today is Professional Engineers Day, and we'd like to tip our hard hats to the many engineers who work all over BNA. They work hard to build and maintain our infrastructure every single day, from runways and roadways to buildings and the environment. 

Their work keeps us moving—and safe. Thanks for all you do, #engineers!

[Sean blackdog]

Yesterday evening from Facebook BNA. 
 

BNA® VISION UPDATE: The first concrete placements for International Arrivals Facility foundation walls begin soon! Steel begins this fall. #BNAVision will connect Nashville to the world like never before. Just you wait. Coming in 2023! #BiggerBetterBNA #WorldClassAirport #WorldClassCity 

HENSEL PHELPS Fentress Architects Corgan Inc.

[Nashville Cliff]

I was inside BNA last night for the first time in a long time. I know it is still deep in construction and I assume that it is more attractive once you pass through security and get to the gates, but the ticketing and baggage areas are as bland as one could imagine. Whatever charm or amenities the public part of the airport had are now gone. The baggage area is bigger, which should be good, but it still took over 40 minutes for the bags to come out for the people I was picking up.

[Chato_reyes]

1 hour ago, Nashville Cliff said:

I was inside BNA last night for the first time in a long time. I know it is still deep in construction and I assume that it is more attractive once you pass through security and get to the gates, but the ticketing and baggage areas are as bland as one could imagine. Whatever charm or amenities the public part of the airport had are now gone. The baggage area is bigger, which should be good, but it still took over 40 minutes for the bags to come out for the people I was picking up.

It's aggressively sterile in baggage claim. Lots of wasted floor space and white walls. A semi-permanent bar could go against the wall between carousel 2 and the offices there and help out a little. With rental car offices temporarily relocating to under the North Terminal Checkpoint, I would imagine material changes to the aesthetics of the entire level will happen once that space is re-claimed.

[Chato_reyes]

Hissho Sushi open in the A/B food court. And if the name doesn't sound familiar, this is a non-traditional vendor, it's a brand to associate with grocery store sushi counters and they have a few locations in airports, food courts etc. A welcome addition nonetheless! 

Edited August 13, 2021 by Chato_reyes

[PillowTalk4]

 

On 8/10/2021 at 1:56 PM, Nashville Cliff said:

I was inside BNA last night for the first time in a long time. I know it is still deep in construction and I assume that it is more attractive once you pass through security and get to the gates, but the ticketing and baggage areas are as bland as one could imagine. Whatever charm or amenities the public part of the airport had are now gone. The baggage area is bigger, which should be good, but it still took over 40 minutes for the bags to come out for the people I was picking up.

On 8/10/2021 at 3:05 PM, Chato_reyes said:

It's aggressively sterile in baggage claim. Lots of wasted floor space and white walls. A semi-permanent bar could go against the wall between carousel 2 and the offices there and help out a little. With rental car offices temporarily relocating to under the North Terminal Checkpoint, I would imagine material changes to the aesthetics of the entire level will happen once that space is re-claimed.

Quite honestly, I've never seen a baggage claim area that was really appealing.  They typically are the most utilitarian part of an airport that travelers see.  I'd rather have more efficiency in the area and delivery than décor.   One thing that I hated about Nashville's old luggage claim area was the lack of space between carousels.  BWI and DCA (which I fly out the most) have really good spaced out carousels.  Rarely do you have people from different flights tripping over each other. 

People in the DC area airports, BWI, DCA and IAD have all been complaining about the amount of time it's taking to get their luggage.  All three airports in this area contribute it to personnel shortages and flight delays.

[Chato_reyes]

21 minutes ago, PillowTalk4 said:

 

Quite honestly, I've never seen a baggage claim area that was really appealing.  They typically are the most utilitarian part of an airport that travelers see.  I'd rather have more efficiency in the area and delivery than décor.   One thing that I hated about Nashville's old luggage claim area was the lack of space between carousels.  BWI and DCA (which I fly out the most) have really good spaced out carousels.  Rarely do you have people from different flights tripping over each other. 

People in the DC area airports, BWI, DCA and IAD have all been complaining about the amount of time it's taking to get their luggage.  All three airports in this area contribute it to personnel shortages and flight delays.

White ceiling, white walls, white lights, white floors. It needs something else.

DCA was my primary airport and it was embarrassingly slow. The screens were never right and it was usually the baggage service clerk shouting at the top of his/her lungs, and even they were wrong half the time. The worst part was there are two smaller (but serviceable) belts on the other side of the wall that never get used when there are 3 or 4 flights that land within 10 minutes of each other. BWI is hot or cold for me.

[smeagolsfree]

Sounds like they need a floor with a disco ball!