See It: Renovated LaGuardia Airport Concourse Now Open

QUEENS, NY — Part of LaGuardia Airport is third-world no more. The notoriously unpleasant airport's first renovated concourse opened Saturday amid an $8 billion makeover.

The 250,000-square-foot concourse in Terminal B comprises 18 gates to be used by four airlines — Air Canada, Southwest, American and United — with the first 11 gates to open this weekend, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office.

The concourse also includes a children's play area, an indoor park, restaurants such as Shake Shack and retail outposts of the McNally Jackson bookstore and the iconic toy store F.A.O. Schwartz, the governor's office said.

"While leaders in Washington only talk about investing in infrastructure, in New York we are actually getting it done, and now travelers from across the world will start to see and experience a whole new LaGuardia," Cuomo, a Democrat, said in a statement Thursday.

The new concourse is one piece of a massive renovation at LaGuardia that got underway in 2016 — about two years after then-Vice President Joe Biden famously compared the airport to a "third-world country."

The project, expected to be complete in 2021, will replace LaGuardia's three outdated terminals with two brand-new ones encompassing 2.7 million square feet and 72 gates, according to Cuomo's office.

This year has seen the opening of a new Terminal B parking garage and a new bridge for vehicles coming off the Grand Central Parkway, the governor's office said.

The Port Authority, which runs the airport, in September started the formal environmental review for a new AirTrain to LaGuardia from Willets Point, Cuomo's office said. That project has reportedly drawn criticism, as some say it would actually lengthen travel times to the airport.

LaGuardia has stayed open during the renovations as the region's airports have seen record-high passenger traffic.

Cuomo has also proposed a huge $13 billion makeover at John F. Kennedy Airport. Travelers have given both JFK and LaGuardia poor marks for customer satisfaction.

"For too long, LaGuardia Airport has offered its passengers a substandard experience, but this weekend's opening of the first new concourse shows the Port Authority is committed to improving the passenger experience with world-class facilities that turn's Governor Cuomo's vision into a beautiful reality," Rick Cotton, the Port Authority's executive director, said in a statement.

(Lead image: The first renovated concourse at LaGuardia Airport is set to open Saturday. Photo by Bebeto Matthews/Associated Press)