Sea-Tac Tower, Damaged in Quake, to Be Rebuilt

Goal is to have facility back in service in two months

(Seattle) -- The Port of Seattle announced today that the FAA control tower at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, damaged in last week's magnitude 6.8 earthquake, will be rebuilt. The decision was announced at a joint news conference with the Federal Aviation Administration.

"We will take the lead on structural rebuilding," said Gina Marie Lindsey, Managing Director of Aviation for the Port of Seattle. "The FAA will be responsible for repairing or replacing the equipment inside the tower."

"We think the design and construction can be completed in two months, and have set that as our goal," Lindsey said.

The main portion of the tower survived the earthquake with only cosmetic damage. Engineers report it is structurally sound. The portions that failed were the window frames and roof supports on the top floor.

Design work began this morning. Lindsey noted that FAA air traffic controllers are a part of the design team.

"These are the people who have to go back in that tower and work," Lindsey said. "It's not enough for the tower to merely be safe. Controllers must have absolute confidence that they're in the safest facility possible."

Cost of the structural repairs is estimated at $2 million. The tower was built more than 50 years ago, and remodeled in the early 1970s. The tower met code at the time of the 1970s remodel, with extensive cross-bracing. Engineers believe the cross-braces played a major role in limiting structural damage.

A new FAA control tower is under construction north of the airport fire station. The facility is not scheduled for completion until 2004.

Until the tower is rebuilt, controllers will operate from a temporary facility just west of the runways. The FAA reports that aircraft arrival rates at Sea-Tac are now close to normal.