Long-term airport expansion options could lead to purchasing surrounding land

City leaders are getting a clearer picture of what the San Antonio International Airport could look like in the next few decades.

The Airport System Development Committee recommended to the City Council on Wednesday to keep the airport right where it is.

On Friday, the committee will begin to examine the options to expand and enhance the airport to handle future air travel.

Last year, traffic at the airport set a record with more than nine million passengers.

The director of the aviation department believes a new record could be set this year, with estimates of 10 million passengers passing through the gates.

“We're bumping up against our demand,” said Russ Handy, director of the aviation department. “Anyone who's traveled out of San Antonio International recently during a peak time knows we're getting pretty crowded."

The committee reported to city council that the current site of the airport could handle future demand for the next 20 years, and possibly for the next 50 years.

The committee presented a few options for expansion that would extend the airports future.

"The longer-term ones are going to require the major property acquisitions,” said John Dickson, the chair of the development committee.

That expansion would happen to the north toward Wurzbach Parkway.