Byline: Tim Christie The Register-Guard

Contractors have begun remodeling and expanding the busy second- floor terminal at the Eugene Airport.

The $986,545 project will add about 2,400 square feet of space on the concourse of Terminal A, as well as 2,400 square feet of unfinished ground floor storage space.

On the concourse, the passenger seating area will be expanded by 1,200 square feet, and the remaining 1,200 square feet of new space will allow Emerald City News and Gifts to move into a larger space. Theexisting gift shop in Terminal A is small, while tighter security restrictions have increased demand for goods, airport officials said. The project also creates space for a small customer service business center.

During the busy early morning hours, as many as 350 people might be packed into Terminal A, Airport Director Tim Doll said. The waitingarea now has about 200 seats and the expansion would add 50.

The project is funded from passenger facilities charges paid by passengers who use the airport.

Even when the airline industry is under strain and the economy is struggling, the airlines that use the airport all supported the project "because it is needed and it will lower their cost of doing business here," Doll said. The project will increase the amount of rentablespace, which lowers rates to airlines, he said. The project has beenin the works for years, but was put on hold after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.