Feb. 27—San Antonio International Airport, set to undergo a $2.5 billion expansion, is getting $20 million this year from a Federal Aviation Administration fund for airport upgrades, after the city lost out on funding from the same pot of money last year.
The city will use the grant to build a 37,000-square-foot ground loading facility in Terminal A, which will allow airlines to board passengers from the tarmac out of five gates. Construction could begin as soon as this summer.
"The work that we've been doing with FAA on advocating for San Antonio is paying off, and that's indicative in this grant," Mayor Ron Nirenberg said Monday.
The ground loading facility will bring the number of Terminal A gates to 22. The project is part of the city's long-term expansion plan, which will create a new terminal that's more than double the size of San Antonio International's two existing terminals.
"Airports are an important front step for visitors, for residents, for anybody that comes to San Antonio, and for a generation, it's been a little bit of an underwhelming experience for a lot of folks," Nirenberg said. "This is the seventh-largest city in the United States, and San Antonio deserves a world-class airport, and that's what this development plan is all about."
As it did last year, San Antonio sought $50 million in federal funding through the $1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, signed into law in late 2021. Up to $150 million total was available this award cycle for the nation's midsize airports, which serve between 5 million and 15 million passengers annually, said Jesus Saenz Jr., the city's director of airports.
City Manager Erik Walsh said partial funding is better than no award.
"We've got $20 million more than we did three hours ago, so I'm pleased," Walsh said.
The FAA announced the 2023 grant recipients Monday. Dallas Fort Worth International Airport received $35 million, and Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport got $9.6 million.
Both DFW and Bush were selected in the 2022 grant cycle, with Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and Houston's Hobby Airport
also securing money, along with airports in El Paso, Laredo, Corpus Christi and Arlington.
City officials at the time chalked up San Antonio's poor showing to the ground loading facility still being in the design phase.
The Biden administration has set aside $25 billion for the nation's airports through 2026. That money can be used to upgrade security, baggage systems, terminals and air traffic control facilities.
"A year from now, we'll be further along in design (of the expansion plan). What the federal government is looking for are projects that are 'shovel-ready,' and we think our competitiveness will be enhanced moving forward," Walsh said.
This go-around, the city and San Antonio's congressional delegation ramped up their lobbying efforts, meeting with federal aviation officials to sell them on San Antonio's long-term plan for increasing the number of flights at its airport.
The mayor, city manager and airports director most recently met with Deputy FAA Administrator A. Bradley Mims in Washington, D.C., this year.
"It's a communication piece, and now they know exactly where the city of San Antonio is heading and the efforts and the work that's being done to grow the airport complex," Saenz said.
City Council is expected to select a contractor to build the ground loading facility in May. Construction is expected to be complete around March 2025.
In addition to ground gates, the facility will have two levels of seating space and food and retail concessions.
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