Heyl: Don't Demolish Pittsburgh International Airport's Landside Terminal

PITTSBURGH, PA - This is one idea that should not be allowed to take off. This is one idea that should be as permanently grounded as a 747 aircraft that debuted in 1975.

Don’t raze Pittsburgh International Airport’s airside terminal when the new terminal is built.

Allegheny County Airport Authority officials have announced plans for a nifty new $1.1 billion terminal that will open in 2023. I’m not sure why it’s needed. The 25-year-old landside terminal is as old as the airside terminal and there’s been no discussion of replacing the airside terminal.

But the renderings of the new building are attractive, and Pittsburgh in recent months has been getting as many national accolades as it has new bike lanes. So don’t we deserve a new terminal? Don’t we want to look our best to attract that new Amazon headquarters?

Authority officials haven’t ruled out letting the airside terminal remain standing but its future appears bleak. There’s already $23 million budgeted to tear down this perfectly functional building that’s only a quarter of a century old The authority apparently has the terminal confused with a professional sports stadium.

There’s been preliminary discussion on possibly converting the terminal into offices or hotel space, but you can find space anywhere for that. This is a grand opportunity to repurpose a still-valuable building in an appealing location. Shouldn’t we think not only outside the box, but down the street from it where we’ve gone to grab a sandwich?

Below are just a few of the ideas I have for the airside terminal’s potential redevelopment. You probably have some as well. I’d like to see them. Send ‘em to me or put them in the comments section below. We can’t let this perfectly fine building be consigned to memory like the Log Jammer at Kennywood will be folllowing its retirement on Sunday.

My modest proposals? Convert the terminal into:

• An indoor drive-in: Anyone can go to an outdoor drive-in if they’re willing to travel far enough. But the sheer novelty of an indoor drive-in would pack the place nightly, even during the cold winter months. The unique concessions process would involve people ordering their popcorn and hot dogs on the ticketing area’s touch screens, then waiting for their orders to come out on baggage claim conveyor belts.

• Primanti Bros. Museum and Sports Bar: This wouldn’t be just a place where you could grab one of Primanti’s “almost famous” sandwiches and a beer while you watch the Pirates, Steelers or Penguins on TV. It would be a place telling the tale of Primanti’s growth from a single Strip District location to an “almost national” chain through the use of video, interactive exhibits and incredibly thick slices of Italian bread.

• An aviation-themed water park: What better way for travelers to kill a lengthy layover than by enjoying a thrilling ride from the top of the tallest water slide, which of course would be called the Control Tower? The only drawback is that the excitement on some of the smaller slides (dubbed “descents,” of course) would be interrupted in mid-ride as people and their inner tubes go through TSA security checkpoints.

• The world’s largest Burlington Coat Factory.

Eric Heyl is Patch’s Pittsburgh field editor. Reach him at 412-334-4033 or Eric.Heyl@Patch.com.

Photo: Dion Hinchcliffe via Creative Commons.