Construction is currently underway for Alaska’s tallest building.
Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport will get a new air traffic control tower. It will be 306 feet tall, 10 feet more than the ConocoPhillips building downtown Anchorage.
The new tower will almost double its height. It will also have an expanded “cab”, or upper viewing area that can accommodate 10 operators. While the current cab was only designed for six, the expanded “cab” will allow for 10 operators.
Ross Timm, a senior Stantec architect, stated that the design team didn’t aim to break any records.
He said, “We knew it would be up there.” “That final height was determined based on the cab eye level. We weren’t trying for the highest building in Alaska. It just so happens that it is that.”
Timm stated that the FAA selected a new site and a higher height to allow for better views of the entire runway complex. This includes the Lake Hood seaplane airfield, which it also manages. According to Timm, the FAA decided that the existing control tower could not handle the increased traffic, particularly cargo traffic, since 1978 when it was constructed.
The FAA’s current standards were not met by the tower. Timm stated that it has obsolete electronic equipment and mechanical equipment as well as not having enough operator positions.
Timm said that the tower will include a radar facility at its base, which controls air traffic in Anchorage’s airspace.
Timm stated that the FAA has not yet provided a cost estimate, but the airport would not be required to contribute. He stated that design should be complete by May 2024 and construction will begin later in the year.
