Shreveport Regional Airport's interior has a new look.

Renovations are nearing completion inside the airport's atrium area after more than a month and a half of work. The changes include a wooden walkway connecting the terminal to the airport's atrium, new carpet and more than 75 seats and tables. Further complementing the changes is the recent addition of Interspace Airport Advertising's new program at the airport and a Nextel American Art Flag inside the airport's terminal.

To celebrate the changes, the Shreveport Airport Authority, the City of Shreveport and the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce hosted a Chamber After Hours networking session from 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 9, 2003, at the airport.

Other sponsors of the event included Nationwide Parking Co., W.D. Schock Co., Northwest Airlink Airlines, White's Printing and Graphics, Creative Host Services restaurants, and Interspace Airport Advertising. As part of the event, Northwest Airlines donated two round-trip airline tickets good for travel in the United States. Mr. David Ford of Princeton, La., was the lucky winner of the two tickets.

The recent remodeling project included changes to the airport's customer waiting areas with new carpet and wooden floor coverings, new furniture, planters with greenery and other amenities.

The remodeling is the airport's first major change since a new terminal opened in late 1999. The Nextel American Art Flag was recently hung at the south end of the airport terminal to provide a visual tribute of what it means to be an American. The 25-foot tall by 33-foot wide flag is constructed to 686 square of fabric that has been hand painted by school-age children, senior citizens and local military personnel. Shreveport was chosen by Nextel Partners as one of just a small handful of cities across the nation to receive an Art Flag.

"We encourage our customers who haven't been to the airport recently to come see the changes first hand," said Raymond Alley, Chairman of the Shreveport Airport Authority."One of our key goals is to make sure Shreveport Regional Airport is extremely passenger friendly for residents in the Ark-La-Tex region and the newest additions provide another layer of good customer service."