NEW ORLEANS – The North Terminal Project at the Armstrong International Airport reached a milestone Friday.

Local leaders and hundreds of construction workers celebrated as the highest steel beam was installed.

Before it is hoisted into place, Mayor Mitch Landrieu, city officials and workers will sign the beam.

Announced in April of 2013, the new North Terminal is currently under construction on the north side of the airport.

The $994 million project created thousands of new construction jobs as well as economic opportunities for local businesses and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises in the region.

The roughly 972,000 square-foot terminal will feature 35 gates, a parking garage for nearly 2,200 cars, a central utility plant, and a ground transportation staging area. The current parking garages will also be remodeled and used as part of the new airport complex.

The airport’s website says the “passenger experience will be improved with a consolidated checkpoint offering greater ease and efficiency for passengers going through security and an in-line baggage system where passengers will just drop off their checked baggage at the ticket counters.”

It also touted new surface parking and concessions located down the center of the concourse, allowing “passengers to see their gate while enjoying a taste of New Orleans or picking up that last minute souvenir.”

The world-class North Terminal was designed by acclaimed architect Cesar Pelli of Pelli Clarke Pelli, Manning Architects, and the Crescent City Aviation Team, a joint venture of Leo A. Daly Company and Atkins North America, Inc.

We’re just a couple years away! It is set to open in 2019.