An architectural rendering of the proposed design of a new airport terminal in Prince Albert. (City of Prince Albert)

By Susan McNeil

City Hall

New terminal design five times as large, estimated cost $22M

Jun 21, 2023 | 9:24 AM

A unique consideration of the type of passenger that uses the Prince Albert airport is the large volume of cargo they carry, city council heard Monday as they discussed the design of a new terminal building.

Most passengers are flying to remote northern communities and take one or two cart loads rather than a suitcase of belongings, explained Nykol Miller, capital projects manager for the city.

“One of the main challenges that our terminal currently faces is that it does not have the adequate space to accommodate the passengers or the massive amounts of cargo that the airport sees on a daily basis,” Miller said.

It is not unusual for a family to have two or three luggage carts for their flight, she said. This impacts how the queue lines work so the new design accommodates larger lineups.

That also changed how the cargo handling area would look.

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When the strategic plan for the airport was done in 2020, it estimated the building should be about 13,000 square feet but because of the minimum amount of space needed for areas including check-in, security, baggage handling, cargo handling, departure waiting rooms and baggage carrousel, it has been increased to over 30,000 square feet.

That is five times as large as the current 5,600 square feet.

Costs have also ballooned thanks to pandemic-related inflation which averaged 4.1 per cent n 2020, 20.5 per cent in 2021 and 18.7 per cent last year, across Canada.

That means costs increased from $461/square foot in 2020 to over $1,000/square foot in 2023 and has hit the bell at $22 million to build the terminal.

The original amount was $6 million but the number could change again depending on how long it takes to get external funding.

The city is not planning construction at this time but wanted to have the project ready to go if a federal or provincial grant becomes available.

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susan.mcneil@pattisonmedia.com