Eero Saarinen’s TWA Flight Center at JFK Airport is one of the most significant examples of Mid-century Modern architecture. The building came to define the modern airport and its expressive form remains a visual metaphor for flight. Since its opening in 1962, the building was subjected to a series of compromising alterations to adapt to the changing aviation industry. It was abandoned in 2001 and, despite being designated an historic landmark, was threatened with demolition.

In 2019, Beyer Blinder Belle completed the restoration of the TWA Flight Center and reactivated this international landmark as a hotel, restaurant and events center. The design maintains the integrity of Saarinen’s iconic terminal and restores it as the lobby and restaurant/lounge facilities. Two new hotel wings located behind the historic Flight Center house 512 hotel rooms and are designed to provide a neutral backdrop for the historic terminal. A subterranean events center is constructed below the former airside tarmac. The project includes a restored 1958 Lockheed Constellation airplane and interpretative exhibits on the building’s history.

As part of the Beyer Blinder Belle team, Miriam Kelly led the condition assessment and design of repairs and adaptations for the TWA Flight Center. The restoration was guided by Saarinen’s original drawings, photographs and material samples held at the Yale University Archives.  A program of non-destructive testing established the condition and repair approach of the concrete thin-shell construction. The curtain wall comprising 238 single-glazed trapezoidal panels, each with a unique geometry, was repaired to match Saarinen’s original design. The interiors were restored using 20-million custom-made penny tiles and paint analysis to determine original colors and finishes. New interventions including a ballroom, retail and a restaurant were located in areas where very little original fabric survived and designs referenced Saarinen's aesthetic. The project restores Saarinen’s original passenger circulation for the Flight Center, reusing the historic flight tubes to connect the historic Terminal with the new hotel wings and events center.