Aspen Airport reviews survey results for modernization project

The results of the final community survey on the Aspen/Pitkin County Airport were given to the Airport Advisory Board by its design team on Thursday.

The survey closed April 5 and collected over 300 responses from across the Roaring Fork Valley, according to Melissa DuMond, communications team strategist with Kimley-Horn, a consulting firm contracted by the county for the modernization project.

“What we were trying to do through this survey was develop a catalog of reference images for the design team to use,” DuMond said. 

The completion of the survey means that the airport design is nearing the end of its “schematic design” phase, where designers are polling the public to get a sense of what the community wants for the “look and feel” of the future airport terminal. 

The next phase is when Pitkin County’s contracted architecture firm, ZGF Architects, can begin nailing down concrete designs for the terminal. It is also when costs begin to crystallize.

“When we move into design development, our charge will be reflecting the community input to date and making sure it’s in there as the county is developing a phasing strategy,” DuMond told the Airport Advisory Board. “(The strategy) is based on detailed cost information, financial feasibility, construction contractor input, schedule and other drivers.” 

The majority of respondents wanted the terminal to have views of the mountains, with a large interest also in “views focused on nature” and “views of the airfield.” 

On a range of questions, the consistent theme was that the respondents wanted the natural world to be integrated into the design, known as “biophilic” design. 

“Having those nature moments insight the terminal with biophilic experiences, park-like courtyards and contemplative spaces all ranked fairly high,” DuMond said. 

Jacobsen Daniels’ Executive Program Manager Joe Christie noted that as the design team finalizes the schematic design phase, they will be presenting their initial ideas to the construction manager at Risk, who is currently in the process of being contracted. This will help to get a sense of what the probable costs of designs may be.

Jacobsen Daniels is a consulting firm contracted with the county for the Aspen/Pitkin County Airport modernization project. 

“We are releasing a portion of the schematic design plans this week to the three short-listed contractors,” Christie said of securing a Construction Manager at Risk. “We’ll be going through some design workshops with them at the end of the month and then we’ll wrap up this schematic design by May 1. However, proposals will still be developed into May.”

Moving forward, airport officials will have to start making decisions about what can and cannot be achieved as concrete designs are presented in the next couple of months. Pitkin County Deputy County Manager Ryan Mahoney asked the board to be prepared to confront some questions about the terminal as May and June approach. 

“What are the must haves, what are the wants?” Mahoney asked the board. “What are things that you know on day one we must have in order to be a functional, comfortable airport while still meeting the common ground recommendations?”