An initial mockup of the new concourse at the Medford airport, designed to accommodate the large planes favored by airlines nowadays.
Courtesy of Mead & Hunt via Jackson County
The Rogue Valley International - Medford Airport is currently much smaller than it should be according to airport officials. The airport is planning a major expansion to accommodate growing demand.
The regional airport in Medford serves a large area and is a doorway to the rest of the world for many living in Southern Oregon and Northern California.
Airport Director Amber Judd said they’re forecasting double the amount of passengers in 20 years. They’re projecting around a million passengers to pass through every year by 2042.
Judd said the airport needs to double in size to handle that many passengers. She said they’re already struggling to meet the demands of airlines with only two jet bridges.
“Our terminal is only 15 years old, but it was designed for a whole lot of smaller regional jets, which don’t exist anymore,” said Judd during a presentation with Jackson County Commissioners on Nov. 26. “And the trend is only bigger and bigger.”
Judd said there are other issues pointing to a lack of space at the airport. They can only operate two security checkpoints at a time, and there’s no more check-in desks available if new airlines want to come in.
A mockup of the proposed new concourse at the Medford airport.
Courtesy of Mead & Hunt via Jackson County
Judd said the proposed expansion will almost double the square footage of the airport to meet demand. And that’ll take a lot of money.
“This is a very, very expensive project,” she said. “And as much as we’ve tried to save over the last 10-plus years we don’t have this much money saved.”
Judd expects the entire project to cost around $180 million based on the latest projections. The most expensive part is a major concourse expansion. They would build a new two-story concourse, capable of handling at least six planes at a time.
Judd said based on their current funding options, she feels comfortable moving forward with the new concourse, along with an expansion of outbound luggage handling.
While Jackson County owns the airport, it operates independently, and doesn’t rely on county funding to run.
Judd said increasing some of the fees the airport charges will help cover some of the costs. They’re also looking at state and federal grant funding. But, they still don’t know how much money they could get from those.
The airport could start seeking a designer for the project as soon as December. But construction isn’t expected to begin until the end of 2026 at the earliest.
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