The entire two-part project is the first installment of Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority's (MWAA) Dulles Development program, a massive $3.4 billion endeavor. "This is a day we've all been looking forward to, when our customers can have convenient daily parking in a garage near the Terminal," MWAA president and CEO James A. Wilding said at the dedication ceremony. "And it's just the beginning for improved parking services. We will open a second garage later this summer."

Turner Construction is behind the building of both facilities. The New York, NY-based company won the project contract in the summer of 2000 and began construction later that fall. Called the West Flank Garage, the five-story parking structure can accommodate up to 3,700 vehicles and is linked directly to the airport's main terminal via a third-floor 22-foot walkway. Its sister 5-story building will hold 4,800 parking spaces and will carry the name North Flank. Also, both high-tech facilities will boast an automated space counting system and will ultimately account for 2.9 million sf of space.

For most, the garage is a welcome addition to the area and a great many building owners willingly accepted buyouts for their property when the Airport Authority had to clear the area for development. However, not everyone considered the new garages worthy of a move. A 117,000-sf building on Aviation Way housing the Fairchild Corporation was seized in April 2000 and purchased in order to make room for construction.