Passenger Terminal

This terminal is designed to be a symbolic gateway to Harrisburg, the capital city of Pennsylvania. It replaced an outmoded existing terminal and doubled its. A number of factors, including the spacing of the gates and the site constraints of taxi-way and control tower locations dictated a linear building scheme.

Responding to passenger movement, baggage flow and security checkpoints, the transverse section produces a building that is easy for the public to read and use. Its minimal depth shortens travel distance between plane and curb. The ground level concourse along the roadway serves all ticketing and baggage functions, while the upper level concourse provides direct enclosed access to aircraft and passenger services, such as waiting areas and restaurants.

The roof's airfoil shape expresses the scale and progression of activities within the terminal. Extending over the ground level concourse in a low overhanging canopy, the roof draws passengers up to the second level and breaks with a clerestory over the upper concourse, introducing daylight along its full length. Central monumental stairs and escalators celebrate passenger arrival in the terminal. On the upper landing travelers pass under a large clock, a landmark found in that earlier symbol of travel, the railroad station. The new terminal further recollects the traditional railroad station with its broad, airy concourse and open, visible waiting areas placed near the gates, all housed under a sculpted roof.