{"id":3667,"date":"2025-08-18T20:10:08","date_gmt":"2025-08-18T20:10:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/angesfinanciers.org\/?p=3667"},"modified":"2025-08-22T15:19:20","modified_gmt":"2025-08-22T15:19:20","slug":"som-breaks-ground-on-most-ambitious-expansion-of-chicago-ohare-airport","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/angesfinanciers.org\/index.php\/2025\/08\/18\/som-breaks-ground-on-most-ambitious-expansion-of-chicago-ohare-airport\/","title":{"rendered":"SOM breaks ground on “most ambitious expansion” of Chicago O’Hare airport"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Concourse<\/div>\n

Architecture studio SOM<\/a> has broken ground on a new terminal at Chicago O’Hare International Airport<\/a> and has released unseen renderings of its design with “orchard-inspired columns” and curvilinear structural elements, informed by Midwestern rivers.<\/span><\/p>\n

The team broke ground today on Concourse D, a building designed by SOM<\/a> in collaboration with Ross Barney Architects<\/a>, Juan Gabriel Moreno Architects (JGMA)<\/a>, and Arup<\/a>, as part of a larger, multi-year expansion to the airport, which the team called the “first building in the airport’s most ambitious expansion”.<\/p>\n

\"SOM
SOM, Ross Barney Architects, Juan Gabriel Moreno Architects (JGMA), and Arup have broken ground on a new concourse at Chicago O’Hare airport<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

An expansion to the airport’s Terminal 5 was carried out in 2023, but it has not seen any major projects since the 1990s.<\/p>\n

As part of the groundbreaking, SOM has released new renderings of its interior, which is illuminated by a multi-level oculus<\/a> on one end and features a curved roof along the length of the building.<\/p>\n

\"SOM
A triangular node contains an oculus<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“Our vision for the new Concourse D considers the entire passenger journey from curb to gate,” said SOM design partner Scott Duncan.<\/p>\n

“From skylit spaces to orchard-inspired columns, every element contributes to a bright, easy-to-navigate environment designed to elevate the travel experience and leave a lasting impression of O’Hare.”<\/p>\n

Renderings of the interior show a circular space lined with two mezzanines<\/a> and topped with an oculus.<\/p>\n

\"SOM
Mezzanines are clad in a light wood<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Retail stores and passageways line the perimeter and seating and plantings hug the interior.<\/p>\n

Elsewhere in the concourse, white, structural support beams splay out to support a curved roof.<\/p>\n

According to the team, the system minimises vertical supports and was also informed by “the orchards that once gave the airport its name”, while also decreasing embodied carbon.<\/p>\n

\"SOM
“Orchard-inspired columns” support a curved roof<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Other renders show seating areas abutting the southern end of the terminal, which ends in a large, curved glass curtain wall.<\/p>\n

According to the team, the curvilinear lines of the concourse were informed by “the oxbow bends of Midwestern rivers”.<\/p>\n

\"SOM
Midwestern rivers informed the curvilinear lines of the terminal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Concourse D will serve as “a node” between several intersecting elements, such as a new underground tunnel that will link to the Concourse E building, which was designed by the same team.<\/p>\n

It will also link to the O’Hare Global Terminal on its other side, another new building for the project designed by Studio Gang<\/a>, which connects directly to the main body of the airport.<\/p>\n