Transformation of Eero Saarinen's iconic TWA terminal ready for take-off
A groundbreaking ceremony will be held tomorrow (15 December) for the transformation of the iconic Trans World Airlines (TWA) Flight Center at New York’s JFK International Airport into a 505-room hotel.
The modernist terminal building – a designated New York landmark – was designed by renowned Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen and opened in 1962, soon becoming a symbol of the Jet Age. However, it ceased operating in 2001 and has remained out of use since then.
Real estate firm MCR Development – which opened The High Line Hotel in Manhattan – plans to create a new structure, designed by architecture studios Beyer Blinder Belle and Lubrano Ciavarra, which will be set back from the terminal and defer to the landmark. The existing building will also be carefully restored to its original glory.
When finished, the complex will feature a new museum focusing on New York’s role in the glamorous emergence of commercial air travel – as jet airliners began flying higher, faster and further than ever before – and the Mid-Century Modern design movement personified by Saarinen. The hotel will also have eight bars and restaurants restaurants, a spa, and a 10,000sq ft (930,000sq m) observation deck overlooking the airport.
The redevelopment plan is a public-private partnership between MCR Development and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Turner Construction is the general contractor.
The budget for the project has formerly been stated as US$265m (€248.6m, £208.5m).
Eero Saarinen TWA Flight Center JFK International Airport New York MCR Development architecture design modernismWellness real estate market booming – forecast to reach $913bn by 2028, reports GWI
UAE’s first Dior Spa debuts in Dubai at Dorchester Collection’s newest hotel, The Lana
Europe's premier Evian Spa unveiled at Hôtel Royal in France
Clinique La Prairie unveils health resort in China after two-year project
GoCo Health Innovation City in Sweden plans to lead the world in delivering wellness and new science
Four Seasons announces luxury wellness resort and residences at Amaala
Aman sister brand Janu debuts in Tokyo with four-floor urban wellness retreat
€38m geothermal spa and leisure centre to revitalise Croatian city of Bjelovar
Two Santani eco-friendly wellness resorts coming to Oman, partnered with Omran Group
Kerzner shows confidence in its Siro wellness hotel concept, revealing plans to open 100
Ritz-Carlton, Portland unveils skyline spa inspired by unfolding petals of a rose
Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners are just one of the names behind The Emory hotel London and Surrenne private members club
Peninsula Hot Springs unveils AUS$11.7m sister site in Australian outback
IWBI creates WELL for residential programme to inspire healthy living environments
Conrad Orlando unveils water-inspired spa oasis amid billion-dollar Evermore Resort complex
Studio A+ realises striking urban hot springs retreat in China's Shanxi Province
Populous reveals plans for major e-sports arena in Saudi Arabia
Wake The Tiger launches new 1,000sq m expansion
Othership CEO envisions its urban bathhouses in every city in North America
Merlin teams up with Hasbro and Lego to create Peppa Pig experiences
SHA Wellness unveils highly-anticipated Mexico outpost
One&Only One Za’abeel opens in Dubai featuring striking design by Nikken Sekkei
Luxury spa hotel, Calcot Manor, creates new Grain Store health club
'World's largest' indoor ski centre by 10 Design slated to open in 2025
Murrayshall Country Estate awarded planning permission for multi-million-pound spa and leisure centre
Aman's Janu hotel by Pelli Clarke & Partners will have 4,000sq m of wellness space
Therme Group confirms Incheon Golden Harbor location for South Korean wellbeing resort
Universal Studios eyes the UK for first European resort
King of Bhutan unveils masterplan for Mindfulness City, designed by BIG, Arup and Cistri
Rural locations are the next frontier for expansion for the health club sector
From parks designed to mitigate the effects of flooding to warming huts for one of the world’s coldest cities, these projects have been designed for increasingly extreme climates