San Antonio Express-News (Sunday)
$2B makeover for airport on fast track
ETA for new terminal, upgrades cut from 2038 to ‘next 6-8 years’
San Antonio International Airport doesn’t make much of an impression on visitors.
Terminal A — the largest of two arrival and departure facilities in the airport complex — is cramped and outdated. And little about it tells travelers they’ve arrived in the seventh-largest city in the country.
San Antonio airport officials are striving to make a better first impression with a plan that includes building a Terminal C and new parking garage, creating a single security checkpoint — and replacing Terminal A. They also plan to imbue the airport with a San Antonio feel.
The remaking of San Antonio International could happen fast.
“Our goal is to have construction begin in the next 3-5 years and for the completion of Phase I to be finished in the next 6-8 years,” city Aviation Director Jesus Saenz Jr. said in an email to the Express-News. “We are planning for the future of the community and the future of the airport.”
Still, he said airport officials have to undertake “advanced programming and planning before we can confidently share a timeline.”
City Council members and city staff so far appear to be on board with the plan, which could cost more than $2 billion. The cost would be covered by passenger fees on tickets, airline and concession rents, and federal grants.
The proposal is set to be presented to the City Council on Nov. 10, with the council expected to vote on it by year’s end.
Before that, plans for a new terminal will be released to the public Oct. 19 at an in-person meeting at the Jewish Community Center, followed by a virtual meeting Oct. 21.
On the fast track
The Airport System Development Committee, its 21 members appointed by Mayor Ron Nirenberg, started work on the airport remake in 2018.
The construction timeline Saenz sketched in his emailed statement is much more aggressive than originally envisioned. In the first phase of the planning effort, passenger growth projections put Terminal C in line for opening in 2038.
It’s unclear why airport officials are looking to speed up the timeline.
What’s more clear is the fact the pandemic threw a wrench into the airport’s projections.
In 2019, before the outbreak of COVID-19, more than 10 million
travelers passed through San Antonio International. Last year, the passenger count collapsed as people largely stayed home and avoided air travel.
From January through August, even as more passengers started flying again out of San Antonio, the number of departing travelers at the airport was down more than 34 percent from 2019.
Before COVID-19, airport officials had estimated the departing passenger count would increase by 2 percent a year, making new gates necessary by 2038. They haven’t issued updated passenger estimates, and it’s unclear when they will.
One explanation for the terminal fast-track is that city officials’ desire for a new airport goes beyond passenger numbers.
Nirenberg has made it clear he wants a new terminal complex as soon as possible to make San Antonio International more inviting to travelers — to improve their “customer experience.” The ultimate goal is to add more nonstop flights from San Antonio, which could help spur economic development and bolster tourism.
At least that’s the hope.
Outdated
Officials acknowledge Terminal A, which opened in 1984, needs an overhaul. Its corridors are narrow, its seating areas are inadequate, and it has too few restrooms and a shortage of space for more restaurants and shops.
The city has spent more than $35 million in recent years to update plumbing and heating systems and other renovations just to keep the terminal functioning.
“The airport is the first thing people see when they arrive by air to San Antonio,” said Councilman John Courage, whose District 9 includes part of the airport. “We want to build the feeling when people come here, ‘That’s a nice airport, that was a great city. We really had a good time here.’ ”
Saenz also wants to make his mark on San Antonio. He started his job running the airport in early February 2020, leaving the chief operating officer spot at the Houston Airport System.
On Sept. 14, he offered City Council a glimpse of the airport plan. He showed council mem