Author: Jessica del Pilar

Airport Terminals Take Flight with Passenger-Centric Upgrades and Additions

Posted on by Jessica del Pilar

Rising traveler volumes, advances in technology, and wellness preferences are project drivers.

Excerpts: On July 8, Nashville International Airport in Tennessee is scheduled to complete the opening of an extension to its Concourse D that adds six new gates and 190,000 sf of space, 23,000 sf of which for concessions; a 160-foot-long moving walkway, and an outdoor terrace.

This project, whose Progressive Design-Build team has been led by Fentress Architects and Hensel Phelps, is part of the airport’s $3 billion New Horizon construction and renovation plan that is addressing surging passenger volumes. 

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“Technology is reshaping every phase of airport design and construction, from planning and prefabrication to post-occupancy maintenance,” says Curtis Worth Fentress, FAIA, RIBA, Founder and Principal-in-Charge of Design for Fentress Architects.  His firm has seen a “major shift” from reactive to predictive modeling, with digital replicas simulating everything from HVAC systems to passenger flow before ground is broken on a project.

Read the full story | Learn more about our Aviation projects

Top 300 U.S. Architecture Firms of 2025

Posted on by Jessica del Pilar

Excerpt: Unlike the weather, fashion, and the price of gas, the upper ranks of RECORD’s annual Top 300 American architecture firms by revenue list aren’t all that prone to change… More dramatic maneuvers were reported outside of the Top 300’s upper echelons. For example, Fentress Architects ascended from 112 to 58.

Read the full story | Learn more about Fentress Architects

Houston’s Bush Intercontinental Unveils Larger, Redesigned Ticketing Lobby

Posted on by Jessica del Pilar

Excerpt: Fentress Architects developed a comprehensive concept design for the IAH Terminal Redevelopment Program, which also includes the new Terminal D-West Pier, a renovated Terminal D, Terminal E Headhouse and associated roadways.

The primary goal of the IAH Terminal Redevelopment Program design was to create a cohesive design with a recognizable identity while improving the passenger experience, increasing capacity and streamlining operations. “Prior to [IAH Terminal Redevelopment Program], international flights operated out of both terminals D and E, resulting in varied levels of service, capacity and passenger experience,” explains Curtis W. Fentress, the firm principal in charge of design. “Consequently, travelers encountered limited views of the outdoors and airfield, lack of daylight in the terminals, solar issues due to concourse orientation, limited sense-of-place and wayfinding challenges navigating between old and new buildings.”

Read the full story | Learn more about IAH’s Mickey Leland International Terminal

New Courthouse Construction Celebrated in Ukiah

Posted on by Jessica del Pilar
The Willits News

Excerpts: City of Ukiah officials were joined by representatives of the Pinoleville Pomo Nation this week for a ceremonial ground-breaking of construction on a new Mendocino County Courthouse behind the Railroad Depot on East Perkins Street.

The Judicial Council describes the Ukiah project as “in the Immediate Need priority group and consequently is one of the highest priority trial court capital-outlay projects for the judicial branch.”

The building specifications provided by state officials have it containing seven courtrooms in a total of 81,169 square-feet. The “Design-Build Entity is Hensel Phelps | Fentress Architects.

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Construction Begins on $144mil Courthouse

Posted on by Jessica del Pilar

Largest Civic Project Ever in Mendocino County

Excerpt: It will take two years for construction crews to complete a public project that is expected to pump millions of dollars into the surrounding community, and in effect expand the commercial core of Ukiah with promises of new retail developments and infrastructure improvements.

“There’s no doubt that we are at a unique point in time where the decisions we make today will dramatically shape the future of our downtown,” said Deputy City Manager Shannon Riley.

The scale of the new courthouse project is monumental:

  • The new courthouse will embrace the latest technologies and meet national standards for ‘green’ public buildings. It will replace a 1950s-era county-owned building which is dated in appearance and function. The current courthouse is out of compliance with current safety, seismic and accessibility codes and deemed by federal officials as a high-risk building because of seismic concerns. The Judicial Council of California after years of delays ranked the new Mendocino County Courthouse as an “immediate need.”
  • It dwarfs other private and public improvements locally past and present. The state funded project has been 20 years in the making, a stop and go process that survived funding crises, multiple delays, and public debates about its location.
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The Latest In Orlando International Airport’s Expansion

Posted on by Jessica del Pilar

Excerpt: On September 20, 2022, Phase I of MCO’s Terminal C welcomed its first arrival, an Aer Lingus flight from Manchester, United Kingdom. The Colorado-based architectural firm, Fentress Architects, designed the highly anticipated new terminal… GOAA, in collaboration with Fentress, sought to provide travelers with the “Orlando Experience” as soon as they disembark the aircraft. Terminal C houses retail spaces for Walt Disney World and Universal Studios, so arriving and departing passengers can easily secure Orlando-centric theme park souvenirs.

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City OKs Conditional Rezoning for Judicial Center

Posted on by Jessica del Pilar

Excerpt: Steven White, who grew up in Chapel Hill and graduated from N.C. State University, is a principal and Washington, D.C., studio director for Fentress Architects, the designer of the additions. White “views each project as a chance to blend history, community and sustainability and to shape an urban landscape that enriches both people and the environment”…

The new courthouse will have a drop-off area and secure entrance for the public on North Grove Street. Parking will be in a large surface lot on the north side of the building. The courthouse addition contains seven courtrooms for District and Superior court and other judicial proceedings, improved security for judges and staff and segregated access corridors for jail inmates. 

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DIA at 30

Posted on by Jessica del Pilar

Curtis Fentress on Denver International Airport, and rejecting ‘grocery store’-like designs


Airport Architecture by Edward Russell

Excerpt: That tent-roofed icon of the west, Denver International Airport, opened its doors 30-years ago last week… Fast forward three decades and DIA, or DEN as it is now known, is a resounding success… And passenger numbers have jumped 19% since 2019 to 82.4 million last year, making DIA the third busiest airport in the U.S. (behind Atlanta and Dallas-Fort Worth) and among the top 10 in the world.

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