KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The airport selection committee will announce the new company which company will win the coveted contract to build a new KCI single terminal next week instead of Thursday.
The committee originally planned to make the recommendation by Thursday but Kansas City Councilman Jermaine Reed will make the announcement by 2 p.m. Sept. 7.
Four companies have bid on the billion dollar job so far.
There were a few criteria all plans for the new terminal design had to meet:
- At least 35 gates
- Two level roads (one for departures and one for arrivals)
- No money from the general fund used
Visit our prior coverage to see the plans from AECOM, Burns and McDonnell, JLL and Edgemoor Infrastructure & Real Estate.
The selection committee met Tuesday to consider the proposals and further confer with financial and legal experts, as well as airline partners. A member of the legal team briefed the rest of the council on the process during Tuesday's regularly-scheduled work session.
After the selection committee makes its pick, it will present the decision to the full council Thursday.
The whole process encountered a hiccup at the end of last week when it came to light the law firm for which Councilwoman Jolie Justus works represented Burns & McDonnell in a suit settled last year.
"I was not aware of that. I work for a firm that has over 500 lawyers," Justus explained.
The councilwoman is in charge of pro bono work for Shook, Hardy & Bacon and told 41 Action News she does no billable work for the firm. Justus did, however, go to the city's legal department to make sure there was no conflict of interest. Neither the city nor her firm saw any reason for Justus to recuse herself from deliberations.
She hopes the last-minute distraction doesn't ruin an exciting moment for Kansas City.
"The fact that folks are trying to, in the eleventh hour, bring in something political is very frustrating for me because I'm really focused on the job, which is making sure we pick the right team to build a new airport for Kansas City," Justus said.
