The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey and Westfield have unveiled Liberty Terrace, the $3.5 million transformation of the old food courts at Newark Liberty International’s (EWR) Terminals A and B.
Officials from the city, the airport and the airport’s airline partners also were on hand Tuesday for the event. The terrace serves as the gateway to post-security concourses. The redevelopment as a whole, which also includes a major overhaul of the dining experience at Terminal B and a lighter refresh in Terminal A, will serve 15 million travelers each year, about half of the airport’s annual traffic.
Liberty Terrace was inspired by the meandering path of an urban park. It includes a new pop-up shop spearheaded by Westfield that will feature rotating retail concepts, the first of which is Jersey Bound, a partnership with Newark Bound magazine, the Newark Convention & Visitors Bureau, Green Distribution, Spectrum Works, Omni Distribution and Union Wear that features unique locally sourced art and regional goods, such as handcrafted jewelry, apparel, literature and keepsakes.
The area invites travelers to dine, relax and recharge through a natural design that is paired with soft lighting, plentiful charging outlets and diverse seating options. One focal point is a 250-foot chain wall mimicking the fluid, dynamic flow of air, and the floor design tiles resemble a boardwalk that are like a pedestrian walkway along the New Jersey shoreline, according to company officials.
The food and beverage spaces in the food courts have been redesigned over the past two years, but the food court environment was constructed in 1973 and had been refurbished most recently 14 years ago. Construction kicked off in August and took place at night in order to provide uninterrupted service for customers.
“The new design features some of the very best that New Jersey has to offer in terms of handcrafted products and works by local entrepreneurs and artisans,” says Deb Gramiccioni, the port authority’s deputy executive director.
