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Melbourne Airport has completed its $85 million refurbishment of its international arrivals hall at Terminal 2 ready for the resumption of trans-Tasman travel on Monday.
The revamp features shorter walks between terminals for connecting flights alongside new metal-panelled ceilings and a wooden wall.
Andrew Perez, partner at architects Grimshaw Melbourne, said the design would elicit “a joyful, inherently Melbourne experience, where visitors start their adventures, and Melburnians feel they are home”.
“Created with locally-sourced timber, the feature wall’s timber battens add warmth to the space transforming the previously dark hall into a bright and spacious modern civic hub,” said Perez.
The overhaul also includes an upgrade of all furniture and “glazed facades” at the interface of Terminal 2 and 3 to bring in more natural light. The work took place since late 2019, including during periods of shutdown caused by the pandemic.
Melbourne Airport’s chief of infrastructure, Simon Gandy, said, “The multimillion-dollar upgrade is spectacular and we’re confident it will leave a great first impression on our international guests, especially all the Kiwis that are about to touch down in Melbourne.”
In addition to the new arrival hall, Melbourne Airport has completed 64 construction projects from March 2020 to now.
“We took the opportunity of continuing some of the more intrusive construction works while the airport was quiet, to be ready to welcome our airline customers and guests as they return,” said Gandy.
“Having paused a number of our larger capacity projects, and with a significantly reduced capital program, we focused our resources on the projects that were essential to maintain safe and secure operations, to enhance the traveller experience and also those commercial projects that are assisting our property customers to rebound strongly from COVID.”
Melbourne Airport recently finished construction of its enormous solar farm, which will provide enough renewable energy to generate 17 GW hours of electricity per annum – allowing it to power all four terminals.
Melbourne Airport said the project, conceived in 2018, will be the largest of its kind in Australia and will provide the equivalent of 15 per cent of the facility’s annual electricity consumption.
