Leaders assess future growth of county aviation

Local transportation leaders and aviation industry officials came to San Marcos recently to talk about development of infrastructure for the future of this region, sharing that the assets and land available here offer unlimited potential for years of economic growth.

At the core of any future transportation expansion is the San Marcos Regional Airport and the surrounding footprint, officials said. This airport is considered unique in the United States by the group of speakers who shared their insights in two panel discussions during the Transportation Summit 2023 held Thursday, Feb. 16, at the San Marcos Conference Center at the Embassy Suites.

The 2023 Transportation Summit, that brought these leaders together to share ideas, was sponsored by the Greater San Marcos Partnership and the San Marcos Chamber of Commerce, with the contributions of many area businesses and organizations.

The approximately 150 guests included government officials and local business leaders from across San Marcos, Hays and Caldwell counties.

This year’s summit was organized to highlight transportation but especially aviation issues that include the parallel growth of non-aviation industries including hospitality and manufacturing— the kind that would spring from the various expansion projects under discussion now for the San Marcos Regional Airport and the acreage in its vicinity.

San Marcos Chamber Vice President Brad Cesak opened the luncheon by introducing a video summarizing highlights related to the airport. Following the video, he introduced Jason Giulietti, the president and CEO of the Greater San Marcos Partnership.

Giulietti spoke briefly and then brought to the stage, the other members of the airport overview panel. Offering an overview of the airport in its current management configuration and operations status were Jim Wimberly, president of Texas Aviation Partners, which manages and operates the airport, and Josh Crawford, Texas aviation director for Garver, an engineering, planning, and environmental services firm connected with the creation of the airport’s master plan.

Wimberly explained that TAP took over management of the airport in October 2010 with several goals, including moving the airport from a small town mentality into a new perspective. San Marco Regional Airport serves as what is called a reliever, taking overload from both Austin- Bergstrom International Airport and San Antonio International Airports.

Wimberly said, “It means you take congestion,” when these airports are at capacity, noting that this is a fortunate circumstance for the San Marcos facility.

He added that the goal for TAP in the beginning and now is still to encourage and promote self-sufficiency for the facility, incorporating sound master planning, understanding how to coordinate and support aviation and non-aviation business, and ways to make the airport a hub for any new business coming into the area.

In this way, Wimberly said the airport may be considered to be the driver for future development in the region and an anchor from which more business may flourish. With approximately two million people within a 25-mile radius of the airport to serve, growth with a plan makes common sense.

Looking to the future, there was discussion of proposed rail lines that would cut through the center of this region. Additionally, the highways that serve the airport and San Marcos are continuing to develop.

Wimberly said the airport “was not well known when we arrived,” and that communicating to the public what is in place and how it can improve is essential.

“We have to stand out,” Wimberly said.

Crawford agreed with the need for getting clear information out to the public, saying one of the challenges faced in the future is the potential lack of support for growth.

Giulietti described the new stretch of FM110 that opened last year and said when the last stretch connecting this highway to I-35 is completed, the change will be considerable in its impact here.

For Crawford, the master plan that was published in 2020 outlines specifically what the airport has now and is a helpful document for city and airport officials to rely on in this new era of expansion.

Crawford said, “The public needs to know,” what is there, from micro to macro data: a utility map and outlines of areas for development. The master plan even included a socioeconomic study.

There is already a strong group of local businesses that call the airport home, Giulietti said, and this can only increase in the future.

During the second panel looking at logistics, Page Michel, president and CEO, San Marcos Chamber of Commerce, brought Stan Finch, president of Berry Aviation, and John Colglazier, a partner with Partners Real Estate, into the conversation.

Finch said Berry Aviation, a decades-old company, is committed to the airport and the region. His company works with the United States Air Force and other defense- related projects.

Also part of their day to day efforts are private aviation needs which are actually quite high in demand at the San Marco facility. Finch was asked about the national pilot shortage facing the U.S. To that question, he said that Berry Aviation has “a flight training device” and has designed an innovative pilot training program. Generating a talented and dependable workforce is a longrange plan for his company, he explained.

Finch also spoke to the changes in the supply chain due to the COVID 19 pandemic. “COVID exacerbated that supply chain shocks,” he said, adding that there was an upside to this for them in some respects. The company has significantly increased its flight activity to and from Mexico, more than doubling it.

Future considerations according to the speakers at the event do include working with the Gary Job Corps Center to continue a program of training and employment.

baudet @sanmarcosrecord.com