Adam RollinsThe city of San Antonio, Texas, has established a $500 million program to help fund airport capital projects. The city’s new Texas Airport System Interim Financing Program seeks to deliver on the city’s six-year capital improvement plan (CIP), enabling San Antonio to advance projects that enhance the airport’s operations and infrastructure.
The program’s interim financing will provide the city with the means to advance projects included in the $2.4 billion CIP, including the $1.6 billion terminal development program. The majority of the plan’s featured projects will cover airfield improvements, transit improvements, terminal expansions, IT upgrade projects and updates to the airport’s Master Plan.
San Antonio will issue airport revenue bonds of a period of multiple years to fund the CIP, and will be refunded with future bonds. Plans are in place to make the first issuance in fiscal years 2025 and 2026. The implementation of the financing program will provide the city with flexibility in funds beginning in December 2025. Going forward, the program will operate as a contingency fund to cover issuance delays.
As part of the commercial paper program’s approval, either a commercial paper dealer or a direct placement purchaser will have to be selected to issue debt securities. Commercial paper dealers finance short-term needs or bridge funding gaps through short-term, unsecured debt provided by cities with high credit ratings. By comparison, direct placement purchasers buy municipal securities directly from the city.
San Antonio will evaluate both options on which provides the lowest interest cost and terms and conditions aligned with the city’s goals and vision.
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