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Upgrades totaling more than $2 billion are taking place at Portland International Airport, and work on the largest single project is ramping up.

The $1.5 billion effort to transform the main terminal is one of several ongoing and planned projects at PDX to provide flexible, state-of-the-art facilities. Together, the projects are known as PDX Next.

鈥淚t’s really designed to take us out into the future,鈥� said Vince Granato, chief projects officer with the Port of Portland.

On Thursday, the Daily Journal of Commerce hosted a Builder Breakfast virtual panel discussion during which executives from Portland’s Hoffman Construction, national giant Skanska USA and the Port of Portland talked about upcoming work at the airport.

Led by a joint venture of Hoffman and Skanska, the main terminal project will involve installation of a nearly 8.5-acre roof designed to withstand a strong earthquake.

Bids for the roof structure and related work are due Tuesday. That will be followed by the mechanical, electrical and demolition packages, for which documents are likely to be issued in November; bids will be due in December, said Joe Schneider, senior vice president in Skanska’s Portland office.

鈥淭here are opportunities there for sub-tier participation,鈥� he said.

Next summer, contracts related to interior finish work will go out to bid, Schneider said.

PDX Next will deliver its first major project Wednesday, when the $215 million Concourse E extension, headed up by Skanska, is scheduled to open.

The main terminal, a stitched-together structure comprising six separate buildings that were constructed at different times under different codes, hasn’t been updated in more than 20 years, Granato said. The existing structure is seismically vulnerable, he added.

鈥淭hat building would not survive鈥� a 9.5-magnitude Cascadia subduction zone earthquake, he said.

ZGF Architects‘ design for the new main terminal building focuses on extensive use of wood to 鈥渒eep the warmth and feel of the airport,鈥� Granato said.

The Port of Portland held focus groups to help guide development of the PDX Next projects. Participants said they valued the existing airport, which is regularly ranked among the best in the United States.

鈥淭hey basically said don’t screw it up,鈥� Granato said. 鈥淲e want to retain the soul of the airport, but we know it needs to change.鈥�

The main terminal will be expanded 150 feet to the west from where it is today. That will provide more room for passenger security and health screening as well as flexibility for unknown future needs, Granato said.

The joint venture partners are working in integrated teams rather than parceling out some work for Skanska and some work for Hoffman.

鈥淐reating a joint venture team that could tackle this, and could handle and bring the experience that was relevant to not only (the) local airport but national airports, I thought was really something that was important,鈥� said Dave Garske, vice president of Hoffman Construction.

Other PDX Next projects include the Concourse B redevelopment, slated for delivery in summer 2021 by the Hoffman-Skanska joint venture, and the parking garage addition and rental car consolidation project, a $282 million build-out led by JE Dunn Construction that is scheduled for completion in fall 2021.

The PDX team is leveraging Skanska’s work at New York’s LaGuardia Airport for peer review as well as technical and logistical help, Schneider said.

Work at the airport has encountered a number of complications. Craft workers are now parking remotely and taking buses to the project site 鈥� an arrangement that creates challenges for social distancing. As a result, buses are running at a lower capacity. Schneider said he’s in discussions with port officials whether workers may be able to use a parking garage.

鈥淭hat’s our current challenge,鈥� Schneider said. 鈥淥n this project, we haven’t had any delays, which is fortunate, but just a lot of creative thinking and a can-do attitude.鈥�

The panel discussion was moderated by Paige Spratt, a Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt shareholder who focuses on construction and real estate law.