YAKIMA, Wash.- On November 17, the wait for additional flights out of the Yakima Air Terminal is over. All contracts have been signed and flights can now be booked for an early morning departure, late night arrival flight in and out of Yakima.
When passengers arrive to the airport, there’s going to be new changes, as YKM Airport Director, Robert Hodgeman, and his team has worked on multiple improvement projects around the property.
Though improvements and modernization were key points in the airport’s mission, Hodgeman didn’t want to tarnish the terminal’s history in doing so.
“There’s been a long history here at the airport,” said Hodgeman. “It was built in the 1950’s and over time there’s been incremental improvements and right now we’re working on a project to do some pretty significant modernization, expansion.”
The improvements started with a poll to the community, asking for preferences for food and drink options.
New vending machines with local coffee beans and sandwiches were installed after feedback from the poll, as well as a small dining area next to the machines.
Following the new food, YKM turned its attention to the parking lot: upgrading the parking system to improve the traveler’s experience.
An app will allow passengers to extend their parking time, and alert them when time is close to running out.
The new system is still in the final stages and is expected to go live later this month.
YKM says the upgrades and modernization will not end when the new flight schedule goes into effect.
Hodgeman says a conference room is being remodeled to possibly house a dining area for a potential kitchen.
A vendor to take control of a cafe or kitchen will need to be found in the near future, but Hodgeman says this project and others could take a while to see the progress.
“While we can’t do the big modernization, expansion of the terminal right now, we’re working very hard with various, different agencies to make that happen” says Hodgeman. “What we can do, is improve the traveling experience with what we have.”
