Duluth International Airport will dedicate its gleaming new terminal in honor of the late Congressman James Oberstar this Friday.
Oberstar represented northeast Minnesota in Washington for 36 years. For many of those years, he served as chairman of the powerful House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, steering millions of dollars back to his home district to fund road, bridge and infrastructure projects -- including funding for the $78 million airport terminal that now bears his name.
"While my father was a national leader in transportation and many other areas, his role in making this new terminal possible was among his proudest accomplishments," the congressman's son, Ted Link-Oberstar said in a statement Tuesday. "Dad never forgot why he went to Congress in the first place -- to improve the lives of the people of the 8th District -- which is what this facility is about. My family and I are extremely proud that it will bear his name."
Oberstar died in May 2014, after losing his 2012 bid for a 19th term in the House. He was 79.
The terminal opened, without a name, in January 2013. The cost of putting Oberstar's name above the door was covered by a mix of public funds and private donations.
Friday's dedication ceremony begins at 4 p.m. and will draw speakers ranging from Duluth Mayor Don Ness to U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar.
