The need for a new air traffic controller at the Gary/Chicago International Airport came into sharp focus 11 years ago when the airport opened its new $174 million expanded runway.
Executive Director Dan Vicari said the airport’s 54-year-old, 50-foot tower didn’t provide controllers with the most accurate visibility of jets approaching the longer runway.
The new tower, expected to open in about 22 months, will be 50 feet taller, allowing controllers better visuals of the entire runway for incoming planes. Officials previously said the aging tower had become inefficient and obsolete.
“It’s really just about making it higher,” said Vicari, who added the new tower represents the culmination of years of planning, collaboration and investments.
The tower came together in funding stages.
In 2024, the Federal Aviation Administration approved a $1.7 million grant for design and engineering. About 80 airports applied and 20 won approval.
In May, it received $10 million from the FAA for construction of the tower.
Last month, the airport received an $8.3 million FAA grant, the final component of the construction project.
In June, the airport authority awarded a $16 million contract to Larson-Danielson Construction, of LaPorte, to build the tower.
“The new air traffic control tower will provide the modern infrastructure needed to support future aviation growth, enhance safety and operational efficiency, and ensure GCIA remains a key economic engine for Northwest Indiana and the Chicago region for decades to come,” Vicari said.
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Airport authority member Vanessa Allen-McCloud said the improvements didn’t happen overnight.
“Over the past decade, the airport authority has remained committed to a simple principle — making strategic investments to strengthen our airport,” she said.
“When people look at an air traffic control tower, they see a building. When I look at this project, I see something much larger. I see the result of years of planning. I see partnerships that have endured across administrations and levels of government. I see hundreds of construction jobs and millions of dollars invested in our region,” she said.
Just last week, the airport opened its new $24 million, 55-acre air cargo campus on its northwest side. It’s already occupied by UPS, and soon will be joined by FedEx, which is building a $60 million distribution center north of the airport.
Vicari said six controllers staff the tower now, which is open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily
The new tower will contain conference rooms and offices that the old tower doesn’t have. It will have two restrooms, a break room and a mechanical room.
When the new tower opens, Vicari said the old tower just to its west will be torn down.
Carole Carlson is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.