Delta Air Lines has unveiled a new virtual tour (above) of its soon-to-be expanded terminal at John F. Kennedy International Airport, slated for completion in 2013. The $1.2 billion project will add 491,000 square feet to the existing Terminal 4 structure at the airport — already one of the largest air terminals in North America, covering 1.5 million square feet and 165 acres. Delta currently occupies JFK’s Terminals 2 and 3, but the aging No. 3 will be phased out and replaced once Terminal 4 is finished. “This is a game-changing project for our customers and the entire regional aviation system,” Chris Ward, executive director of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, said in a statement. — Sarabeth Sanders [more]

Andre Balazs and the former Trans World Airlines Flight Center

Hotelier Andre Balazs is one of several developers scoping out Eero Saarinen’s vacant terminal at John F. Kennedy International Airport after the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey offered up the opportunity to build a new boutique hotel there earlier this month. According to the Wall Street Journal, Balazs’ firm — as well as Hoboken W Hotel builder Ironstate Development and WQB Architecture, which was responsible for the Lambs Club building hotel conversion on West 44th Street — appeared on a list of attendees at a recent site visit. [more]

When Hostess Brands broke the news that it would be shuttering its 130-year-old Wonder Bread factory in downtown Jamaica, some community members mourned the loss of a neighborhood icon, hundreds of workers feared for their jobs and developers and local politicians began salivating at the opportunity to take over 100,000 square feet in the middle of a potential commercial and transit hub. According to Crain’s, Hostess says it hasn’t yet begun thinking about unloading the facility, but will start the sale process after closing the factory Jan. 7. Carlisle Towery, president of the Greater Jamaica Development Corp., said that “presents a tremendous opportunity.” [more]

American Airlines is in advanced talks to bring alliance partners British Airways Plc and Iberia Lineas Aereas de Espana SA into one terminal at John F. Kennedy International Airport to bolster overseas flights, Crain’s reported. Putting these Oneworld alliance members under one roof would help American compete with Delta Air Lines, which unveiled plans yesterday for a $1.2 billion renovation at JFK. The cost and scope of the possible changes at American’s Terminal 8 are still under discussion with British Airways, Spain’s Iberia and the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, which oversees JFK. Any investment would be in addition to the $1.3 billion that American spent on renovations at another terminal in 2007, according to Art Torno, vice president of American’s New York operations. American also is remodeling two concourses at New York’s LaGuardia airport, where its domestic flights are based, a $30 million project. [Crain's]

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Terminal 4

Plans for the redevelopment
and expansion of Delta Air Lines Terminal 4 at John F. Kennedy
International Airport — which call for nine new international gates,
construction of a connector between Terminal 2 and Terminal 4, an
expanded baggage claim area and ultimately the demolition of Terminal 3 — were unveiled today by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Governor David Paterson and Delta CEO Richard Anderson. Construction for the $1.2 billion project is scheduled to begin in September, with the first phase of development and full relocation of Delta’s Terminal 3 operations slated for completion in M [more]

Delta’s Edward Bastian and JFK’s Terminal 4

Delta Air Lines is said to have reached a deal with the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey to ditch its crowded, outdated terminal at John F. Kennedy International Airport for a renovated and expanded terminal next door, according to the New York Times. The deal involves demolishing Delta’s current Terminal 3, the PanAm Worldport, (Delta also operates Terminal 2, which would be kept intact) and moving the airline into Terminal 4, which would get a $1.2 billion renovation and expansion and would eventually house Delta’s foreign flights. The project, which is to be presented today before the Port Authority’s board, would be completed in 2013 at the earliest. A similar deal for Delta to leave Terminal 3 — which Delta president Edward Bastian recently called “the worst facility that we operate” — was announced in 2000 but then abandoned after the Sept. 11 attacks. Another push for a plan in 2005 never got off the ground. [NYT]

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Delta’s Edward Bastian and JFK’s Terminal 4

Delta Air Lines is close to announcing the renovation of its outdated terminals at John F. Kennedy International Airport, the Wall Street Journal reported. The airline has been in talks for months with the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey about funding the move, which is expected to include demolishing the former Pan Am Worldport — an icon at JFK, famous for its saucer-shaped roof — to make way for new facilities. According to Delta President Edward Bastian, an announcement
is expected within 60 days. “It is the worst facility that we operate,” he said of Delta’s two JFK terminals, which date back to the early 1960s. Among the options under discussion is the expansion of Terminal 4 — a 1,500,000-square-foot international terminal serving nearly 40 airlines — which opened in 2001 and sits next to the terminal that’s expected to be demolished. [WSJ]

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Delta’s Edward Bastian and JFK’s Terminal 4

Delta Air Lines is close to announcing the renovation of its outdated terminals at John F. Kennedy International Airport, the Wall Street Journal reported. The airline has been in talks for months with the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey about funding the move, which is expected to include demolishing the former Pan Am Worldport — an icon at JFK, famous for its saucer-shaped roof — to make way for new facilities. According to Delta President Edward Bastian, an announcement
is expected within 60 days. “It is the worst facility that we operate,” he said of Delta’s two JFK terminals, which date back to the early 1960s. Among the options under discussion is the expansion of Terminal 4 — a 1,500,000-square-foot international terminal serving nearly 40 airlines — which opened in 2001 and sits next to the terminal that’s expected to be demolished. [WSJ]

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Manhattan-based Vista Realty Partners is planning a new 110,000-square-foot air cargo warehouse on the northern end of John F. Kennedy International Airport that, according to the New York Times, would be the first speculative warehouse development there in almost a decade. At $125 to $150 per square foot in construction costs, the project, which is set to break ground in September and which does not yet have a tenant, signals the developer’s optimism about the market’s recovery. [more]

The Queens architect who has worked on some of the city’s largest recent construction projects, including the AirTrain to John F. Kennedy Airport, is the target of an investigation into his ties to the Democratic political leaders who backed them. Robert Gaskin has contributed thousands to the campaigns of Rep. Gregory Meeks, state Sen. Malcolm Smith and Queens Borough President Helen Marshall, and has done work on properties owned by each. He has also been hired to do work for the church of former Rep. Floyd Flake, of Aqueduct Entertainment Group notoriety. A probe by a federal grand jury in Manhattan is looking into whether there is a connection between those ties and the fact that the politicians were also strong supporters of city projects for which Gaskin has won contracts. Among them: planning for the Greater Jamaica Economic Development Corp. and the JetBlue corporate center in Jamaica. [Post]