The Brownsville-South Padre Island International Airport received a $1.4 million reimbursable federal grant that will help fund the final phase of installation of second boarding bridge in the airport’s terminal, said Bryant Walker, director of Aviation at the airport.
Walker said airport officials had been working with the Federal Aviation Administration to get as much grant money as possible to assist with the airport’s construction. The project was separated in three phases which allowed the airport to pursue additional grants. “We have six FAA grants that cover the entire terminal project,” he said.
“This is funding that is actually paying for the jet bridges, which were installed well after we opened because we still had to demo (demolish) the old terminal. This will get us one step closer to closing out the funding for the terminal project,” Walker said.
The Brownsville-SPI International Airport welcomed passengers to its new terminal in January 2021, and frequent flyers and new visitors are impressed by its new look. Walker said surveys filled out by customers indicate they like the terminal’s new look and how it compares to other airports.
“New users to the airport or new flyers, they come in and they are just in awe of a transportation facility that is as modern as this one is,” Walker said.
He said frequent flyers come in and remember the old terminal and when they have seen its transformation, they are “blown away, far more than the first-time flyers, because the first-time flyers don’t know what to expect because they don’t have an image or standard in mind. So when they show up, they are just impressed. They will look for us to thank us for completing the project.”
He said other segments of flyers who are out-of-towners who fly in from the Heathrow or LAX airports arrive and the new terminal is what they expect to see, Walker said.
“People that know how it was or even locals are very impressed, very satisfied with the investment and the effort we went through to put this together, Walker said.
The restaurant at the airport is currently under construction and should be completed within 60 days. After the completion, airport officials will get an “operator” to come and provide restaurant and bar services to airport customers, Walker said. “Right now, we just have a kiosk sort of snack operation.”
The COVID-19 pandemic delayed the opening of the restaurant because there was no traffic across the airport industry, Walker said, and there were not any restaurants that wanted to open at the time.
Expansion of the short-term parking is also underway, which will double the number of spaces that are currently available to airport customers. A digital display project is expected to be completed in the next two weeks that will be an “informational public address and marking within the terminal,” that had not been completed earlier, Walker said. “Those three generate significant revenue for the airport so that will be just a windfall for the operations.”
The Brownsville-SPI Airport Board gave its approval to an airport art policy that will allow the airport to do more art installations or displays, Walker said. SpaceX earlier this year gifted to Brownsville a wing flap of SN8, the first multi-engine Starship prototype for SpaceX.
That flap was placed in front of the airport not far from Starship Road.
SN8 launched to 41,000 feet during a testing Dec. 9, 2020. Although it exploded while crash landing, it was the first successful launch to 41,000 feet that was conducted at the SpaceX launch site at Boca Chica Beach.
Airport officials with hold a workshop with the city on Sept. 6 and very big news will be revealed, Walker said.
“We are active every day, getting things done, whether it’s completing projects or stimulating the local economy and attracting business and working to improve our facilities for both user and the community,” Walker said.
