Airport face-lift nearly complete

Walk toward the light.

Come Friday, Spokane International Airport travelers will be ushered into a newly remodeled security screening area in the main terminal. The dingy, dusty walkway will be replaced with an open area featuring large windows and clear view of the situation ahead.

No more guessing about the length of the line or how much more time you have to chat with friends and family.

But eat up before you go, and don’t count on picking up a last-minute gift at the airport shops.

The new food court won’t be complete until mid-December, and the new shops won’t open until sometime in January.

The renovations are part of an $18 million modernization project.

Work is a couple of weeks behind schedule because of some unplanned asbestos removal, airport spokesman Todd Woodard said.

The new security area for the A and B concourses won’t have any additional stations, Woodard said.

But the new setup will have room for more people to wait in line – about 400.

“It’s a less intimidating environment,” he said of the well-lighted, open space.

Because 95 percent of airport customers are passengers, the new restaurant area won’t be available to friends and families dropping people off and picking them up. But it will feature more choices.

The food court in the rotunda area will include David’s Pizza, Quizno’s, Starbucks and Chili’s II, Woodard said.

A business called Vintage Washington will serve wine.

Work on the C Concourse includes building a new Pyramid Alehouse.

Stores will eventually include the Simply Northwest gift shop, a small Auntie’s bookstore with a Craven’s coffee shop, and a general market.

“We wanted a mix of local, regional and national products,” Woodard said.