An public open house for Paulding Northwest Atlanta Airport terminal, which is nearing completion, is tentatively set for Saturday, May 1.

The terminal is scheduled to be finished in mid-April, says Airport Director Blake Swafford, adding that he hopes negotiations with an unnamed fixed-base operator (FBO) result in a contract before the Airport Authority’s March 17 meeting. The FBO could begin operations in the terminal May 1, he said.

“We’re working on static aircraft displays and maybe a small air show” with an airplane performing stunts, said Swafford, who is also executive director of the Paulding County Industrial Building Authority.

Swafford said the FBO with whom Paulding is negotiating intends to operate a flight school, as well as aircraft charters and leasing, at the terminal.

“We’re very happy with the services we think they’ll be providing,” he said; “it looks like they’ll have first-class services.”

The terminal will house the FBO, Airport Authority offices, meeting space for the Airport Authority and Industrial Building Authority and space that aviation-related businesses can lease. “I suspect a flight school will operate out of there, and I would not be surprised to see an aviation insurance business,” he said.

Swafford said about 12 pilots had input into the building design and that it will contain a flight crew lounge where pilots can do flight planning, check weather and radar and take a nap in a rest area. “I think pilots will be very happy with the facility,” he said.

“We got a lot of input from pilots to make sure the terminal will accommodate pilots as well as the business side equally.”

Swafford said the terminal has space for a restaurant and that he hopes restaurateurs will lease the space.

The facility “is designed as a first-class airport, and this is a first-class building,” he said. “We had input from about a dozen pilots, marketing people, businesspeople and interior designers — there’s probably more input in this than in any building in the county. It will be an asset for years to come.”