The Denver City Council approved a series of contracts Monday that allocate $1.1 billion to complete the Denver International Airport’s long-running Great Hall Project by the summer of 2028.

The contracts passed in a block 10 to 3 vote, with council members Candi CdeBaca, Amanda Sawyer and Paul Kashmann voting “no.” All members in opposition argued that the voting process was too rushed, with efforts to postpone the vote to February and to have a third-party review of the contracts shot down.

“Just because an airport is incredibly valuable and important, doesn’t mean they’re beyond the oversight of the council,” Sawyer said. “I’m very disappointed at the rushed process, the lack of partnership with council and discussion with community and the cavalier attitude towards $1 billion worth of funding.”

The contracts add $900 million to the airport’s contract with Hensel Phelps Construction Company, $100 million to the contract with Stantec Architecture Inc., $50 million to the contract with Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. and $50 million to the contract with LS Gallegos.

The additional dollars will fund the third and final phase of the airport’s Great Hall Project – an effort to renovate the airport’s main Jeppesen Terminal that the airport has been working on since 2018.

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The Great Hall Project was intended to be completed by November 2021 but it was halted in 2019 when the original contractor was fired. After hiring a new contractor in 2020, the airport completed phase one of the project in November and plans to complete phase two in mid-2024. The first two phases cost $770 million.

Supporters of the contracts argued Monday that the city cannot afford to wait to approve the new funding because of the state the airport is currently in.

“It’s a mess,” Councilman Kevin Flynn said. “A ‘no’ vote on these contracts is a vote to keep it a mess, and I believe we can’t do that. I regret we have to undertake it in the way we have … but we can’t leave our kitchen renovation halfway done.”

Phase one of the project added over 80 self-check-in stations for three airlines. Phase two will add a 17-lane security checkpoint and a triple escalator.

Phase three will construct another security checkpoint, add self-check-in stations for remaining airlines, add new flooring to the baggage claim and curbside, create an arrivals meeting area and construct a Center of Excellence and Equity in Aviation.

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Phase three is scheduled to break ground near the end of 2022 and be completed between the spring of 2027 and the summer of 2028 – four years later than the most recent completion deadline of May 2024.

“We feel very strongly about the completion of this project,” airport CEO Phil Washington said during a meeting with council members. “This airport is 26 years old. It is aging and it is showing its age in many respects. It’s crowded. … It’s the same airport but with more people.”

The completion of phase three intends to allow the airport to accommodate 100 million annual passengers. The airport was built in 1995 to accommodate up to 50 million annual passengers, Washington said. In 2019, before pandemic-related travel decreases, the airport saw 69 million passengers. In 2022, the airport estimates it will see 72.8 million passengers.

Washington said the total cost of phase three will be around $1.3 billion. The additional $200 million comes from direct costs such as quality insurance, inspection, permits, waste disposal and fees paid directly by the airport.

The $1.1 billion will come from funds generated by the airport. Under federal regulations, these funds must be used for the airport and cannot be used for other city projects like public roads or parks.

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