Airport plan gets green light
A long-term blueprint for improvements at the Santa Fe Municipal Airport lifted off Wednesday after city councilors adopted the planning document following a discussion over how the facility might make use of renewable energy and concerns about the possibility of increased noise at the airport.
Cameron Humphres, the airport manager, said a review showed there would be “no appreciable difference” in noise generated by the airport despite a “modest growth” in activity forecast for the coming years — something made possible, he said, because of the development of quieter planes.
Also Wednesday, Mayor Javier Gonzales introduced a resolution to rename the cityowned airport on the far southwest side the Santa Fe Regional Airport.
The new master plan for the airport, arriving after more than three years of study, “is the first of many steps we have to take to truly position this airport as part of the economic engine of our community,” Gonzales said.
Councilors unanimously adopted the plan and an amendment brought by Councilor Joseph Maestas that calls for use of solar power at the airport.
Other planned improvements during the current fiscal year include an asphalt overlay on the runway, the first phase of reconstructing a taxiway, and the design and construction of a new airfield electrical vault, which supplies and controls power to the runway and taxiway lights. To come later are construction of a new terminal building and other runway expansions and maintenance projects.
The last time the city published a master plan for the airport was in 2002. The newly established overview of airport facilities covers the next two decades.
Meanwhile, at a meeting of the Santa Fe County commissioners Tuesday, a pair of residents voiced their objections to further development at the city airport.
Commissioner Robert Anaya said the communities of Agua Fría, La Cienega and La Cieneguilla, which all lie outside city limits, are “directly impacted every day” by changes to flight patterns, and the city’s appetite for airport development must be balanced with the concerns of residents in these areas.
Humphres, the airport manager, told city councilors Wednesday that noise impacts from the airport had actually decreased since the most recent master plan and that some of the improvements outlined in the new plan will allow for the use of more aircraft that are designed to be quieter.