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President Donald Trump has unveiled another major renovation project in the Washington area. This time, it’s Dulles International Airport.
Trump on Wednesday announced a $22.5 billion plan to modernize and expand Dulles, which opened in 1962.
The project would add or renovate more than five million square feet of space, including replacing the aging “C” and “D” concourses and building a 32,000-space parking garage closer to the terminals. It would also phase out the airport’s familiar “people movers” — the mobile lounges that have shuttled passengers between the main terminal and gates for more than six decades.
They would be replaced with a U-shaped passenger train, a central pedestrian tunnel and additional moving walkways.
Trump said the goal is to modernize the airport while preserving its famous main terminal.
“It’s considered one of the worst airports anywhere in the world,” he said. “We’re going to make it, maybe the best, with some hard work and some good thought process.”
He added, “We will replace the current C and D concourses, which are basic disasters, all the while preserving the iconic original terminal, that is one of the great architects of the world did the original terminal. And it was very, very important that it be left.”
It’ll need bipartisan support
Trump said some parts of the project will require congressional approval, but it should all have bipartisan support. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said construction could begin as early as next spring if lawmakers approve the plan.
“A lot of people, whether you’re a Republican or Democrat, you hate the way Dulles operates,” Duffy said. “So everyone’s come together and we’re building for America and building for the future.”
Trump added, “It really is bipartisan. Whether you’re a Republican or Democrat, you don’t want to go and be subjected to this airport, because this airport is a terrible place to be.”
The majority of the funding will come from low-interest rate municipal bonds issued by the airport authority, according to ABC News. Officials say the airport will stay open during the renovation, which will take place in phases over 10 years.
Trump’s other projects
The Dulles project joins a growing list of high-profile construction plans backed by the president Including the controversial new White House ballroom and a proposed triumphal arch near the Lincoln Memorial.
Crews also recently started a new construction project at the White House, reportedly to rehabilitate the exterior columns as part of Trump’s latest beautification efforts.
Earlier this summer, Trump also had the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool resurfaced; a project that’s seen multiple issues pop up. The pool has had to be drained multiple times to clear up algae blooms and redo the new coating after it started peeling up.
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