GREENVILLE, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Big changes at Appleton International Airport are coming to fruition.
On Thursday, officials held an open house to give the public its first look at the airport’s new concourse.
Now that the first phase of the airport’s expansion project is complete, three new gates will be open in time to welcome guests for the NFL Draft in Green Bay next week. From April 23-27, ATW has 272 inbound and outbound flights scheduled.
ATW Director Abe Weber said the completion of phase one of the expansion is right on time.
“Our goal was to have this open before the draft. This will be open for airport operations next Monday, ahead of the draft. We hit that mark, checked that box off, so we’re very excited about it,” said Weber. “For the draft attendees — 40,000 or 50,000 people — will come through this airport, so it’s very exciting for them to be able to see all the work that went into it, the new concourse, several of the new amenities that are put in place.”
The 47,000-square-foot, $66 million airport expansion is funded by a combination of state, federal and regional grants and budgeted dollars.
The expansion is set to more than double the size of the existing airport and will bring the total number of gates to 10.
“Our whole process for this concourse expansion was really, ‘How can we use the facility expansion to elevate the customer experience?’ So we were looking at how can we sprinkle in amenities, larger gate space, more places to sit,” said Weber.
Other features of the expansion include:
- Expanded restroom facilities including family restrooms that are universal gender so parents can accompany children of any sex into the restroom safely.
- Sensory support room for any neurodivergent traveler who might be overwhelmed by a typical airport setting.
- Quiet room that could be used for nursing mothers, travelers who need to reduce anxiety or even for use as a prayer room.
- For passengers traveling with service animals or pets, there is a relief area in the concourse, so ticketed passengers don’t need to leave the secured area.
Part of the expansion is the creation of a new restaurant and biergarten. Fratellos Craft Kitchen & Bar @ ATW and ATW Biergarten are not yet open, but will soon give travelers a chance to indulge in Wisconsin food staples and specially-brewed beer.
Sustainability played a large role in the project, with daylight, interior lighting and energy efficient systems expected to cut lighting power by over 20%. Additionally, the roof, walls and window glazing are designed above code to provide an energy efficient space, saving on heating and cooling costs.
Future construction phases will expand the airport’s ticketing and baggage claim areas and refresh existing concourse areas in the airport.
“We know we’re not done yet. Phase two is going to get started right after the draft. We’re going to be kind of demoing the old parts of the concourse and connecting old concourse with new concourse, and that will take us into 2026. And then we also know that out on our front drive lanes, we’ll be expanding and elongating those front drive lanes to really make it much more convenient for people to pick up and drop off at the front curb,” Weber said.
There will be a connector between the existing gates and new gates, plus expanded areas for passenger boarding and a variety of seating options. The connector area will be on a gradual incline, eliminating the need for escalators, which many passengers said were difficult to use with strollers, wheelchairs and walkers.
