Craving a local beer, coffee or a burger before catching a flight? This fall, travelers will soon get to consume familiar drinks and dines at the Durango-La Plata County airport.
Past the U.S. Transportation Security Administration checkpoint, or on the “air” side, a Desert Sun Coffee Roasters coffee shop and a Steamworks Brewing Co. Hub restaurant will open up, Tony Vicari, DRO aviation director, said.
“Most people want to clear security and then grab a bite to eat or get a coffee before they jump on their flight,” Vicari said.
Local businesses Ska Brewing, Zuberfizz, Honeyville, Mountain Dough Baking Co., Tippy Canoe, HomeSlice Pizza, Cream Bean Berry, Animas Chocolate, Graze Colorado, Farm to Fingers, Love ‘N Juice and Coca Cola of Durango will have product placement throughout the airport.
Before security, or the “land” side, there will be a store called the “Durango Market and Grill.” It will have a storefront/gift shop, with retail, food, beverages and gifts and local product placement, Vicari said.
Exact dates for the completion and opening of the storefronts are fluid due to construction. Vicari said the first business venture to open will be the Steamworks Hub, which is on course to open sometime in September.
The Steamworks Hub hopes to host a ribbon cutting with the Durango Chamber of Commerce on September 21st, but that date may be subject to change with construction’s progress, said Kris Oyler, co-founder and CEO of Peak Brewing Co., which owns Steamworks.
The Desert Sun coffee shop and the Durango Market and Grill should open sometime in October.
When the airport issued its request for proposals from concessionaire companies, it included scoring to incentive proposals to include partnerships with local brands, Vicari said.
Sky Dine, a family-owned company based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, was announced as the airport’s new concessionaire in a city of Durango news release on Jan. 20. They are taking over from the previous concessionaire, Tailwind Airport Concessions.
“We are excited for the opportunity to bring the airport’s vision to life at DRO and meaningfully represent the Durango community,” Dustin Sejnoha, owner and managing partner of Sky Dine, said in the release.
With the airport’s renovation, one goal is to create a sense of place. Alongside partnering with local brands, the airport has been putting up art installations from local artists.
“As we’ve been working through our terminal expansion project, one of the goals that we have overarching is to ultimately emerge with the terminal being the best representation possible of Durango,” Vicari said.
Each vendor has their own contract with the concessionaire, but in general, the personnel at the airport will be employed directly by Sky Dine, Vicari said.
“Each of those local vendors, the ones that have things like prepared foods, have been closely engaged with Sky Dine to make sure that the products are aligning with what the public is used to seeing here,” Vicari said.
Oyler said that the airport’s Steamworks Hub will have a smaller menu than then restaurant in Durango because of the hub’s smaller space.
Executive Chef and Chief Operating Officer of Steamworks Sean Clark and staff members have been training Sky Dine employees to prepare and present dishes similar to what customers get from the restaurant in town.
While Steamworks had to pare down complicated or specialized menu items because of the airport’s space limitations, the menu still includes fan favorite foods. The Steamworks hub will serve the Southwest salad, Southwest burger, fish n’chip, homemade mac n’cheese, the Bacon Royale burger and nachos among other menu items, Clark said.
Within the hub, slices of Home Slice pizzas will be sold individually as a grab and go option. The pizzas will be prepared at Home Slice, brought to the airport, and cooked for customers by Sky Dine, Clark said.
Customers can enjoy some of the top selling Steamworks beers as well, such as the Colorado Kolsch, the Steam Engine Lager and the Sultan of Stoke IPA.
“We’re excited to have our brand out there,” Oyler said, “and hopefully give people some better and more options out there as far as food and beverages when they’re traveling through the airport.”
Some of the local businesses involved are continuing their presence at the Durango-La Plata County airport. Ska Brewing will continue to have beer on tap with the new concessionaire, Kristen Muraro, the Marketing Director for Ska Brewing said.
Zachary Ray, the owner of Desert Sun, said that working with Sky Dine has been a very positive experience. He said the company has facilitated a real partnership and the process of setting up shop in the airport has been very collaborative.
“Working with them has just been like building a partnership with someone you’re really looking forward to doing business with,” Ray said.
Sky Dine has been open to suggestions and discussions on how to best represent the Desert Sun brand, Ray said. The coffee roaster has a primary focus on sustainability built into their model.
The Desert Sun coffee shop in the airport differs a bit from if Ray were to set up shop on his own, still in their collaboration he made sure to maintain hard lines on sustainable practices.
“I want fully Colorado certified compostable cups,” Ray said, “and that costs money.”
Sky Dine agreed to fund and utilize only compostable cups in the Desert Sun coffee shop to maintain the brand values. The Desert Sun coffee shop will have signage, telling the story of the company and its commitment to organic roasting and sustainability, Ray said.
“With Sky Dine, it really has felt like they are coming into our community not only with curiosity of who we are and what we’re about,” Ray said, “but also interested in supporting the uniqueness of our community and finding collaborative ways to partner.”
Vicari said he is excited moving forward with a concessionaire committed to local partnerships, and that the businesses represented in the airport can provide a sense of Durango for travelers.