Off the top of my head, I can count 5 times that we have met friends or relatives that had lay-overs at DIA. We drove out there, paid for parking, and met them for dinner/drinks in the main concourse. Each time, we probably spent $100 to $150 in total. I would imagine that this is a fairly common scenario. That will be impossible under this new plan. So will meeting people unfamiliar with the airport as they emerge from the escalator. This could be a big deal for elderly parents or younger children flying alone.

Like you said, most people actually flying don't spend much time in the terminal. Ticket passengers don't spend much time there. They rush to wait in line at security, then go to their gate. The main terminal should be a more public space.