The airport city has come of age, providing an opportunity to re-evaluate land uses on- and off -airport and the airport’s role in regional economic development.

The Emergence of the Airport Cityin the United States

October 2013focus

The “airport city” concept is not new. Its

visionaries include commercial artist Nicholas

DeSantis in the 1930s; renowned aeronautical

engineer H. McKinley Conway in the 1970s;

and University of North Carolina Professor John

Kasarda since the 1990s. Meanwhile, various

elements of the concept have appeared at

airports, refl ected in retail shopping venues

with “market pricing,” restaurants featuring

regional cuisine, and in-terminal hotels.

The airport city has come of age in recent

years because of changes in the global

economy. In developing countries, the

airport city concept is being used as an

urban planning tool to accommodate

strong economic and population growth.

In the United States, the airport city

concept is viewed as a means of increasing

nonairline revenues amid the uncertainty

of federal funding, as well as promoting

economic development and job creation. This

focus piece examines U.S. applications of the

airport city concept. For a discussion of the

airport city in the developing world, please see

our November 2012 compendium “Adapting

to a Changing Global Economy” available on

our website.

All Roads No Longer Lead to Rome

Global cities are greater in number and more geographically dispersed today than 20 years ago.

The idea that global trade relies on one hub

such as Rome or a handful of megacities

In recent years, uncertainty and vigilance

have been central to airport planning.

Although the need for caution remains,

continuing changes in the global economy

provide an opportunity to step back from

daily operational challenges and consider

alternative models for air transport

management emerging throughout the

world. The timing of an economic recovery

remains uncertain but the need to adapt to a

changing global economy is on the horizon,

as discussed in this fourth focus piece in a

series.

ADAPTING TO A CHANGING GLOBAL ECONOMY

such as New York, London, and Tokyo is

outmoded. Today, more than 500 global cities

with populations of 1 million or more have an

active role in the global economy. Megacities

are often the focus of business investment,

but midsize global cities with populations of

2 million to 5 million, such as Brasilia, Denver,

Guayaquil, Hanoi, Manchester, Nairobi, Seattle,

and Vancouver, are experiencing the fastest

economic growth. Midsize cities are emerging

as key drivers of global growth, with the

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of these cities

collectively forecast to increase an average

of 9% per year through 2017, according to

a 2012 Economist Intelligence Unit study,

Benchmarking Global City Competitiveness.

Denver’s Proposed Aviation Station at 61st and Pena Boulevard

Airport City Denver, South Terminal Redevelopment including the airport hotel, public transit center, and public plaza

focus – The Emergence of the Airport City in the United States http://www.leighfi sher.com/discover-whats-new/publications2

C is for Connectivity

Connectivity is key to the continued growth of global cities and emergence of airport cities.

Although there is no industry-standard

metric of connectivity, recent research

by the MIT International Center for Air

Transportation defi nes airport connectivity

as a function of the frequency of scheduled

fl ights and the quantity and quality of

destinations served nonstop and with

connecting service. In the MIT study, the

overall connectivity of an airport is higher

if there is airline service to large hubs and

international gateways where there are more

opportunities for connecting service to a

large number of destinations. For example, a

small-hub airport’s overall connectivity rating

would increase more with airline service to

a large hub than it would with service to

another small hub.

Deconstructing the Airport City

Elements of an airport city are present at many U.S. airports.

In the United States, elements of an airport

city have been developed incrementally with

the addition of restaurants and specialty

retail, hotels, business offi ce complexes, free

trade zones, leisure and fi tness facilities, and

cultural attractions such as museums and art

displays. In-terminal hotels with conference

centers and meetings rooms are located at

11 U.S. airports; a 12th is under construction

An illustration of a London aerodrome consisting of four runways in the form of a giant wheel supported by the city’s buildings, proposed by London architect

Charles Clever, and published in Modern Mechanics and Inventions in 1931.

An illustration of the “Airport-Docks for New York” proposed by New York architect Harry B. Brainerd, and published in Everyday Science and Mechanics in 1931.

5000 1,000 1,500

Large-hub

Medium-hub

Small-hub

Non-hub

Sources: Ranking of most connected airports—MIT International Center for Air Transportation, “Modeling Changes in Connectivity at U.S. Airports: A Small Community Perspective,” June 2013. Scheduled departures—OAG Aviation Worldwide Ltd., online database, accessed June 2013.

Average daily scheduled departures in August 2013

International

RANKING OF THE TOP 15 MOST CONNECTED AIRPORTS IN THE

UNITED STATES

1. Chicago O'Hare

2. Atlanta

3. Dallas/Fort Worth

4. Los Angeles

5. Denver

6. Charlotte

7. Houston Intercontinental

8. Newark

9. New York LaGuardia

10 New York Kennedy

11 Phoenix

12 Philadelphia

13 San Francisco

14 Boston

15 Miami

The “Skyscraper Airport for City of Tomorrow” proposed by Nicholas DeSantis, published in Popular Science in 1939.

Already global business is beginning to plan

strategy from a city, rather than a country,

perspective.

The Economist Intelligence Unit

Benchmarking Global City Competitiveness, 2012

Airport City Concepts From The Past

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focus – The Emergence of the Airport City in the United Stateshttp://www.leighfi sher.com/discover-whats-new/publications 3

at Denver International Airport.

U.S. airports feature displays of aviation

memorabilia and regional art such as

the Aviation Museum and terminal

exhibits at Las Vegas’ McCarran

International Airport. In 2012, San

Francisco International Airport opened

a post-security yoga room that is

available to all ticketed passengers.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Applications of the airport city concept will be aff ected by physical, competitive, political, and fi nancial considerations.

In recent years, airport city projects

have been launched at a number of

U.S. airports, including the airports

located in Atlanta, Dallas/Fort Worth,

Dayton, Denver, Detroit, Greensboro,

Indianapolis, Memphis, and Pittsburgh.

The scale varies, depending on the

amounts of available land, private capital,

existing infrastructure, and regional airport

competition. Applications of the airport city

concept range from large-scale development

of a greenfi eld site (primarily outside the

United States), to development of large tracts

of available land at an existing airport, to

incremental development of business parks

on airport property.

Airport City Denver—In 2012, Denver

International Airport (DIA) and the City

and County of Denver announced their

vision for “Airport City Denver” at the Global

Airport Cities Conference and Exhibition

hosted in Denver by DIA. A key feature of

the Airport City Denver vision is to target

specifi c economic clusters of complementary

businesses including aviation, aerospace,

logistics, renewable energy, bioscience and

agrotech, and their supporting technologies

and industries. The fi rst phase of Airport City

Denver is under way. A 519-room airport

hotel is scheduled for completion in 2015,

to be followed by the 2016 completion of a

22.8-mile commuter rail line connecting DIA

to Denver’s Union Station. Future phases

are focused on an economic development

strategy that would leverage DIA’s property

assets to increase global connectivity and

competitiveness while generating, nonairline

revenues and further stimulating the regional

economy.

VantagePort—In July 2013, the Detroit

Region Aerotropolis was rebranded as

“VantagePort” as part of a 25-year strategy to

market, plan, and support development within

a 60,000-acre region in and around Wayne

County’s Detroit Metropolitan and Willow Run

airports. Plans for an aerotropolis began in

2006; since then, nearly 2,500 new jobs have

been created and more than $350 million in

investment by small and large businesses.

VantagePort—a public-private economic

development agency consisting of four cities,

three townships, two counties, the Business

Leaders for Michigan, DTE Energy, and the

Wayne County Airport Authority—is expected

to create 64,000 jobs and $10 billion in annual

economic impact by the time it is built over 20

years. Since 2011, VantagePort has attracted

Inergy Automotive Systems, Lee Steel, Brose

North America, Watson Engineering, and

GE Aviation Group. In September 2013,

VantagePort announced the redevelopment

of the former Willow Run Powertrain plant for

a technologically advanced connected vehicle

research center.

Aerotropolis Atlanta—Planning for

“Aerotropolis Atlanta” began in 2008 with the

purchase and remediation of a brownfi eld

site adjacent to Hartsfi eld-Jackson Atlanta

International Airport, where the Ford Atlanta

Assembly Plant was previously located. The

redevelopment of the 120-acre site is privately

funded and will be zoned for 6.5 million square

feet of Class A offi ce space. It will include a

hotel, conference center, data center, business

park, retail shopping, and a 4,000-space airport

parking facility. In May 2011, Porsche Cars

North America announced plans to build a

new North American headquarters at the site,

including a 150,000-square-foot offi ce tower,

Porsche Technical Training Center, and Porsche

Customer and Driving Experience Center

Airport City Applications

Airport City Elements

network are likely to be part of the future

landscape. If airport operators are to take

advantage of these opportunities for global

connectivity, their challenge will be to:

Defi ne an application of the airport

city concept that is appropriate for the

region, increases nonairline revenues,

and mitigates the risk of uncertain federal

funding.

Collaborate with regional economic

development agencies to pool resources

and knowledge and develop a coordinated

economic development plan.

Identify the potential benefi ts of global

connections for regional companies, and

the airline service that would support

those connections.

Support airport links to regional rail and

road networks to assist the movement of

people and goods and create additional

economic impact.

Promote the airport as a driver of regional,

national, and international economic

growth.

SAN FRANCISCO OFFICE:

LeighFisher

555 Airport BoulevardSuite 300Burlingame, California 94010 U.S.A.Tel: +1 650.579.7722www.leighfi sher.com

Copyright © 2013 LeighFisher—All Rights Reserved.

Prepared by Linda Perry and Satyaki Raghunath.

For further information, please contact:Linda Perry—linda.perry@leighfi sher.comSatyaki Raghunath—satyaki.raghunath@leighfi sher.com

Printed on 100% recycled paper. MKTG674

CHICAGO

CINCINNATI

DALLAS

WASHINGTON, D.C.

OTTAWA

TORONTO

AMSTERDAM

BERN

BOLOGNA

GLASGOW

LONDON

MANCHESTER

NEW DELHI

READING

VantagePort—Detroit Region Aerotropolis

featuring a 1.6-mile test

track and handling circuit.

Porsche broke ground in

November 2012; operations

are to begin in the fi rst

quarter of 2014. Although

Aerotropolis Atlanta is not

on airport property, the

management for Hartsfi eld-

Jackson Atlanta International

Airport has participated in

the planning discussions.

Redevelopment of the site is

being guided by the private

developer and regional

economic development offi cials,

including the Atlanta Regional Commission.

Colorado Springs Airport Business Park—

The fi rst tenant building in the Colorado

Springs Airport “Cresterra” Business Park

opened in the fall of 2007 after several years

of planning and infrastructure investments.

Managed by a public-private partnership

through a Master Developer arrangement,

the approximately 1,000-acre park adjacent

to the airport’s passenger terminal complex

features a master-planned community that at

full build-out will include a golf course, trail

system, and opportunities for development of

offi ce, fl ex, distribution and/or retail business

space. Three tenants have located at the

Airport Business Park. The fi rst, Aerospace

Corporation, arrived in 2007 with the

completion of a 78,000-square-foot Class A

offi ce building. In 2008, Northrop Grumman

occupied a 125,000-square-foot Class A offi ce

building, and the Army Corps of Engineers

completed a military Arrival and Departure Air

Control Group (A/DACG) complex comprising

of approximately 70,000 square feet of

building space and 40 acres of aircraft ramp.

Access is Key

Economic development strategies are needed to promote the development of all transportation modes.

While there is often little direct synergy

between airports and seaports (i.e., goods

moving between the two), economic

development strategies that involve both

are likely to generate the greatest economic

impact and number of jobs. For example,

a major manufacturing business that uses

seaport infrastructure will also contribute

to the demand for airline service at the

airport. Similarly, airport city rail links that

transport passengers to the airport will also

provide transportation for the employees of

the seaport and other businesses. In recent

years, the construction of airport rail links has

facilitated airport city development.

The Era of Cities

In the 21st century, global business will be planned from a city perspective.

Global economic activity usually is defi ned at

the country level, but cities are increasingly

likely to be the focus of global business in the

future. One driver of this trend is the rapid and

sustained rate of global urbanization, with well

over half the world’s population now living in

cities and generating more than 80% of global

GDP. A second driver is the increasingly global

network of corporations in cities throughout

the world. As a result, airport cities providing

connections to the global air transportation

Follow us on:

U.S. airport HotelNumber of rooms

Year open

IN-TERMINAL HOTELS AT U.S. AIRPORTS

Chicago O’Hare International

Boston Logan International

George Bush Intercontinental/Houston

Denver International

Orlando International

Philadelphia International

Detroit Metropolitan

Pittsburgh International

Dallas/Fort Worth International

Tampa International

Miami International

Bradley International

Hilton

Hilton

Marriott

Westin

Hyatt Regency

Marriott

Westin

Hyatt Regency

Grand Hyatt

Marriott

H. I. Development

Sheraton

860

599

559

519

445

419

404

336

298

296

252

237

1973

1999

1982

2015

1992

1995

2002

2000

2005

1982

Late 1980s

1987The Hilton at Chicago O’Hare International Airport

has been operating since 1973.

94

275

275

24

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WICK

GODDARD

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EUREKA

PENNSYLVANIA

TYLERTYLER

AIRPORT

TEXTILE

BEMIS

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INGSA

VAG

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NN

AN

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MO

RTO

N T

AYLO

R

BELL

EVIL

LE

BECKWillow Run

Airport (YIP)

DetroitMetropolitan

Airport (DTW)

FUTURE AEROTROPOLIS94

17to Ann Arbor

275

275

94

94

0 1 2Miles

0 1 2Kilometers

12

17

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