O’Hare 21 Global Terminal

Chicago finally has a builder for the heart of its airport overhaul. The Chicago Department of Aviation awarded the design-build contract for the O’Hare Global Terminal to a joint venture of Clark Construction and Clayco, anchoring the roughly $8.5 billion O’Hare 21 program. Construction is expected to begin in late 2026.

Project Scope
The Global Terminal replaces the 1960s-era Terminal 2 with a single building that handles domestic and international flights under one roof, a first for O’Hare. Two new satellite concourses connect to the terminal through underground tunnels. The design, led by the Studio ORD team of Studio Gang, SOM, Corgan and STLarchitects, has been public for years; the award puts a contractor on the hook to build it.

Why It Matters
Airlines have fought over gates and financing at O’Hare for most of a decade. Locking in a design-builder converts a long planning fight into a construction schedule, shifting risk from whether the project happens to whether the team can hold the number. The hard part is phasing: demolishing and rebuilding a central terminal without shutting down one of the busiest airports in the world. It ranks among the largest single U.S. airport contracts awarded this year, and it sets the template other big hubs will follow.

Project Team & Details