New satellite concourse to bloom at O’Hare with ‘orchard’ theme, city says

Chicago officials unveiled a design for the first of two game-changing satellite concourses at O’Hare International Airport Tuesday.

The interior of Satellite Concourse 1 is inspired by O’Hare’s origins as Orchard Field, architects said at a City Hall news conference.

“The experience of Chicagoans and visitors alike while walking through the concourse will be like moving through an orchard,” Skidmore, Owings & Merrill Design Principal Ryan Culligan said.

“(Passengers) can connect with nature in garden-like spaces where they can relax before heading to their gates.”

Getting to this phase of O’Hare’s latest redo that involves a new Global Terminal to replace Terminal 2 and the satellite concourses was anything but bucolic, however.

After pushback from United and American airlines over delays and costs, city leaders on May 3 announced a deal prioritizing construction of the Global Terminal and Satellite Concourse 1.

“The new phasing plan means all amenities and efficiencies offered by our new Global Terminal will be available to passengers and airline partners sooner than initially planned,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said Tuesday.

Satellite Concourse 1 will offer 19 gates and have the flexibility to accommodate a variety of aircraft sizes.

Culligan described features including “rows of treelike columns that create clear lines of sight for travelers while enabling flexibility for the airlines throughout the boarding process. These tree columns improve the carbon footprint of the building compared to the conventional structure and efficiently support the span of the roof,” he said.

“Dappled light will fall from skylights above filtering through the rows of tree columns.”

Gate lounges will offer “comfortable, light-filled areas” with colors based on Midwestern landscapes.

The satellite structure will first be accessed through a new passenger circulation bridge from Terminal 1’s Concourse C.

“The south end of Concourse C will act as a hinge to the new building,” Culligan said, adding designers will respect the legacy of Terminal 1 architect Helmut Jahn.

Meanwhile, “international travelers arriving at the airport will travel along a floating walkway that is suspended from above by those tree columns.”

Completion of the structure isn’t expected to wrap up until 2028.

Satellite Concourse 2 will be built later as will an underground tunnel connecting the various facilities, the Chicago Department of Aviation said.