Pitkin County introduces ZGF-led team for Aspen–Pitkin County Airport modernization

Pitkin County commissioners on Aug. 12 heard a public introduction of the airport terminal modernization design team and a preview of the process residents and advisory groups will use to influence the project. County Deputy Manager Ryan Mahoney opened the presentation and turned the floor over to task‑force co‑chairs and the selected design team.

Meg Haines, a co‑chair of the Airport Advisory Board, told commissioners the county received more than 80 applications for two citizen task forces that will help guide the design team’s work. The two citizen panels — a design task force and a multimodal transportation task force — will each have nine members and will be presented to the Aspen Airport Board for approval, Haines said.

ZGF Architects presented the team and design approach. Tony Martinez, associate principal with ZGF, introduced the firm and local partners, including a local architect the team said will “be a filter in which all design decisions will be made.” Sharon VanderMeelen, partner at ZGF, and other team leads described the design emphasis. Chris, ZGF’s design and sustainability lead, framed the team’s aim as “building that acts like an ecosystem,” saying the architects plan to explore energy, water and materials strategies that reduce operational and embodied carbon and improve passenger experience.

The team listed several peer projects they will draw on for ideas, including the Portland International Airport terminal expansion that uses mass timber and local sourcing, and Rocky Mountain Institute’s living‑building projects. Structural engineer Greg Kingsley (KLA) and PAE (sustainability consulting) spoke about local material sourcing and the potential to use Colorado‑sourced mass timber where feasible.

County staff described the planned schedule: a concentrated period of public engagement in the first 16 weeks of the design phase, with three major public workshops before year’s end that will surface concept options and refine a single preferred direction to advance into schematic design. Staff also said the county plans to seek a construction manager early in the design phase to reduce cost uncertainty before committing to a construction schedule.

Why it matters: the county has written sustainability aims into the project and told the commissioners the design team’s brief includes aggressive targets such as low‑energy operation, low embodied carbon and strategies to make the airport “resilient” during outages. The county and design team said community input will be heavier at the project start and taper once major decisions are locked into the design.

What happens next: the task force membership will be presented to the Aspen Airport Board, and the design team will host the three public workshops identified for the remainder of the year. Commissioners and staff said they will return to the board with specific schedule and budget details as design decisions narrow.

Commissioners and members of the public asked technical and process questions about FAA constraints on solar glare, codes that limit mass timber heights, and how the team will plan for operations during construction. ZGF said it expects to educate code officials when needed and pursue variances or code changes only where life‑safety can be demonstrated and mitigations exist.