Port Authority announced its intention to demolish I.M. Pei's 1969 "Sundrome" (aka JFK Terminal 6) back in 2010, and tributes are pouring in as its day of reckoning approaches at the end of this month. The terminal differs from other swooping, Jet Age terminals at Kennedy Airport with its rational modernist lines and pioneering all-glass wall; as City Room points out, "even the mullions between the main window bays are made of glass" and enclose 16 cylindrical concrete interior columns, a bit of complex engineering that renders the entire structure semi-transparent.
Interestingly, Henry Cobb--partner at Pei Cobb Freed Partners--made a “last-minute plea for reversal of this death sentence” to David Barger, the president and chief executive of JetBlue airlines, which abandoned the terminal in 2008, moving instead to Terminal 5. His response is not heartening: "While I share your passion for classic terminal designs, I have concluded the time has passed for the pavilion building to serve any functional purpose." The lot's new functional purpose will include an extension to Terminal 5, with additional boarding gates and aircraft parking.
· A Modern Masterpiece, No Longer Used, Will Soon Disappear at Kennedy Airport [City Room]
· Port Authority Wants to Tear Down I.M. Pei's JFK Terminal [Curbed]
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