Construction of a $390 million, 5,500-spot Terminal B garage progresses at Sacramento International Airport, part of a $1.3 billion upgrade project to accommodate record passenger numbers. The facility will feature amenities like a parking guidance system, EV chargers, solar panel readiness and public art. Scheduled for completion in fall 2026, the project creates 1,000 jobs under a Community Workforce Training Agreement.
Sacramento County Department of Airports photo
An excavator clears ground on the future site of the Terminal B garage at Sacramento International Airport.
A six-story, $390-million building is about to stake its place on the Sacramento skyline.
That's good news for travelers through the Sacramento International Airport (SMF) who might be pleased to know the new Terminal B garage will come with 5,500 parking spots and numerous other amenities that should make flying the friendly skies that much friendlier.
The $229 million design-build contract was awarded to locally owned Otto Construction, which also built Terminal A. It is "a significant milestone as the first design-build project in Sacramento County's history," said Scott Johnston, SMF senior public relations officer.
"The garage will be built on the same footprint as our former hourly lot which had approximately 700 spots," Johnson said. "It's going to be a major upgrade."
The Terminal B garage is part of an ongoing effort to meet the record-breaking number of passengers the airport has seen in recent years.
"We are growing by leaps and bounds, setting monthly passenger records throughout the year," Johnston said, noting the airport served a record 13,634,838 passengers in 2024. The 13.6 million passengers represent an increase of 5.1 percent from 2023.
Terminal B is one of seven projects in the $1.3 billion SMForward program, which includes a $140 million pedestrian walkway under construction.
Crews broke ground in October 2024 and recently finished foundation work. Crane operators are expected to begin work in late spring, said TJ Chen, deputy director of SMF planning and development.
"The public will see the project start coming off the ground in the coming month when the weather is nice," Chen said. "The garage has several key amenities. We are going to add a parking guidance system. Essentially, when you enter the garage, you have a red light/green light system to help the customer identify where the occupied stalls are located. Plans also include EV [electric vehicle] chargers on every floor, and we're going to make the garage infrastructure solar panel ready for the installation of solar panels on the roof, hopefully in the near future."
The garage also will offer close-in, covered parking and even reserved parking, Johnston said.
"You'll be able to go on the website, reserve a specific spot and you'll know exactly where you are going and what you will pay," he said.
The project has a few challenges, primarily working in a tight space and near other contractors who are working on other airport projects.
As the project shifts from groundwork to the actual construction, crews are keeping to an aggressive schedule. Luckily, Chen said, the project is not in the airfield.
"The program is to create the capacity to meet the expected demand," he said. "A second goal is to create a more walkable campus. The garage is located right next to Terminal B and it's also in proximity to other projects, such as the pedestrian walkway, which is only 100 feet away."
That's meant a lot of analysis and planning to hopefully prevent delays.
"We have really good partners," Chen said. "Everyone is focused on communication and partnering. Everyone understands we are working in a very tight space. We are constantly talking about how do we coordinate construction activities and not interfere with each other's activities. We encourage contractors to talk to each other and will facilitate coordination meetings to ensure they are not working on top of each other. It takes a lot of coordination for sure."
The garage will be constructed primarily of concrete, partially enclosed and faced with perforated steel panels on the east and south sides, as well as parts of the north. The facades will feature about $1.75 million in public art by California artists.
"We are working with artists to design the perforated steel panels for the garage," Chen said. "The artist provides the artwork design to the manufacturer, and all of the perforation is done by a computer-aided process."
The project will support approximately 1,000 jobs during its construction, using labor under a Community Workforce Training Agreement (CWTA), according to the project website.
The garage is slated for completion in the fall of 2026. CEG
Lori Tobias
Lori Tobias is a journalist of more years than she cares to count, most recently as a staff writer for The Oregonian and previously as a columnist and features writer for the Rocky Mountain News. She is the author of the memoir, Storm Beat - A Journalist Reports from the Oregon Coast, and the novel Wander, winner of the Nancy Pearl Literary Award in 2017. She has freelanced for numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Denver Post, Alaska Airlines in-flight, Natural Home, Spotlight Germany, Vegetarian Times and the Miami Herald. She is an avid reader, enjoys kayaking, traveling and exploring the Oregon Coast where she lives with her husband Chan and rescue pups, Gus and Lily.
Read more from Lori Tobias here.
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