O’Hare Global Terminal Satellite Concourses

reflecting Chicago’s cultural heritage & enhancing the airport experience through innovative and immersive green infrastructure

Stemming from an international design competition organized by the City of Chicago, Omni Workshop™ was part of the team selected to lead the design of the satellite concourses for a new Global Terminal at O’Hare International Airport. Designed for seamless operation, the Orchard Gate Concourse exemplifies goals set forth in the O’Hare 21 expansion plan, which supports the airport campus’ future growth and success by allowing for continuing expansion and change, providing financial viability, maximizing design efficiency, and serving the shared environment. Construction on the concourse began in March 2023 and is on track for completion in 2028.

Inspired by O’Hare’s ecological history as an “Orchard Field,” where the airport’s call signal “ORD” originated, the new Global Terminal is defined by light-filled spaces and amenities that reflect Chicago’s cultural heritage and vision for the future. The design incorporates an array of innovative, immersive green infrastructure that creates moments for relaxation and contributes to overall sustainability goals.

Upon entering the terminal, passengers are welcomed to a soaring, double height gathering space, where clear sight lines lead through check-in and security. Skylights deliver an even, diffused natural light throughout, reducing the building’s environmental footprint. The check-in, security, and baggage claim halls are covered by a single, undulating, lattice-like long-span roof punctuated by additional skylights and supported by a series of elegant tree-like columns, which speak to the site’s history as an orchard. To either side of the check-in hall, visitors are invited to take respite in a landscaped prairie replete with local Illinois plants and grasses.

The vision for the design ultimately reimagines the airport waiting room experience into a place of rejuvenation, immersing passengers in a tree-lined garden open to the sky while waiting for a flight and infusing the concourse with lush vegetation from the outside in.

Renderings courtesy of SOM

Location
Chicago, IL

Type
New Construction
Transportation

Size
1.2 million SF