'A great benefit': St. George Regional Airport offers more than vending machine food - St George News

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ST. GEORGE — For more than a decade, the sole source of food and drink for the people flying in and out of the St. George Regional Airport each year were vending machines. That changed last December when Tailwind Concessions opened expanded food offerings for travelers.

At the Tailwind Concession area located in the gate area of the St. George Regional Airport terminal, St. George, Utah, Jan. 27, 2023 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

Located in an alcove in the gate area where passengers disembark and board their flights nearby, Tailwind Concessions sports a variety of food and beverage choices along with souvenirs and other items that make it reminiscent of a small convenience store.

“We have a lot of options,” said Dominique Askew, Tailwind Concession’s general manager. He added that anything bought from Tailwind is safe to take on a plane and doesn’t have to be thrown away or poured out before boarding a flight.

Tailwind had a soft opening on Dec. 1, 2022, followed by an official opening in the middle of the month. Since then, word has gotten out about the expanded food service at the airport that Askew said has been well received.

“It has been taken very well, even from day one,” he said, adding that during the first few hours the new concessions area was opened, it did very well, and has continued to. “It has grown since then. Now everyone is still in shock that we’re here, and they’re happy.”

Expanded food services at the regional airport have been a chief demand for passengers over the years and have only grown with the airport’s increasing use.

“The passengers have been requesting it for the longest time and they are very, very happy that it is here now,” Airport Manager Rich Stehmeier said.

Just as St. George and Washington County have grown overall, repeatedly listed as one of the fastest-growing areas of the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, so too has the use of the St. George Regional Airport. Over 325,000 passengers passed through the airport in 2021, 90% of whom wanted fresh food options, according to city documents.

“The existing concessions area at the terminal consists only of vending machines, and expanded concessions was one of the main requests of passengers through the passenger survey,” the airport’s master plan stated prior to Tailwind’s arrival.

The St. George City Council approved a deal with Tailwind SGU, LLC in June 2022 for the installment of what was described in city documents at the time as a kiosk with an attached retail space. This expanded into a large setup that Askew said is likely to keep growing.

“We’re going to keep growing and have more options,” he said. “We just want everyone to be happy.”

For passengers stuck at the airport terminal due to delayed flights, the new concessions area can go a long way in helping keep them happy, Stehmeier said.

In this file photo, former St. George Mayor Jon Pike and other city and airport officials welcome passengers disembarking the first flight to the St. George Regional Airport from Dallas-Fort Worth, St. George, Utah, Sept. 26, 2019 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

“Before Tailwind was here, if a flight was delayed for a half-an-hour, 45 minutes, sometimes up to three to four hours, you had people here who had one option and that was a vending machine,” Stehmeier said. “Now they have a chance to get something to eat … It’s a great benefit for the passengers.”

The addition of Tailwind Concessions is also a part of an overall plan to expand the airport over the next few years.

Part of the general plan for the airport includes projects to expand the terminal ramp within the next two years while also expanding to four gates. Funding has also been requested by airport officials to expand the airport’s secure area – everything past the TSA check-in – to the airport’s second floor. Part of this project will involve the installation of escalators, if funding is granted.

As for what other services or amenities passengers have demanded in addition to more food and drink choices, Stehmeier said many have asked for a secure area outside the terminal where they can sit. This is a request that is being factored into the overall expansion of the terminal, he said.

In order to gauge what additional or expanded services passengers want as part of the airport’s overall expansion, the city of St. George currently hosts a survey on its website asking how often the participant flies out of the airport, what type of food services they want to see at the airport (such as a sit-down restaurant, fast food or a bar, for example), what type of passenger-focused amenities they want like to see and more.

Photo Gallery

At the Tailwind Concession area located in the gate area of the St. George Regional Airport terminal, St. George, Utah, Jan. 27, 2023 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

Mori Kessler serves as a Senior Reporter for St. George News, having previously contributed as a writer and Interim Editor in 2011-12, and an assistant editor from 2012 to mid-2014. He began writing news as a freelancer in 2009 for Today in Dixie, and joined the writing staff of St. George News in mid-2010. He enjoys photography and won an award for photojournalism from the Society of Professional Journalists for a 2018 photo of a bee inspector removing ferals bees from a Washington City home. He is also a shameless nerd and has a bad sense of direction.

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'A great benefit': St. George Regional Airport offers more than vending machine food - St George News

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