After several months of delays, Houston City Council on Wednesday voted unanimously to approve an initial investment of $150 million toward a multi-billion-dollar project to revamp George Bush Intercontinental Airport's Terminal B.
The agreement calls for United Airlines and the city to co-finance a massive project, estimated to cost $2.6 billion, to expand the terminal and renovate its decades-old infrastructure. Besides the construction of 40 new gates, the project will also feature an upgraded ticketing lobby, baggage system, security processing area and other new amenities to improve travelers' experience.
Under the newly approved agreement, the Chicago-based airline company would cover the majority of the costs, while the city of Houston would contribute $624 million in three installments. The project will create about 3,000 local jobs, according to Houston Airports Director Jim Szczesniak.
The proposal first appeared on the council agenda last November and resulted in a bitter standoff between former Mayor Sylvester Turner and former Controller Chris Brown during the final weeks of their tenures. Citing the "rushed nature" of the deal, Brown refused to certify the funds were available — a necessary step before the council can approve any city financial commitments.
New Mayor John Whitmire sought to revisit the deal last week, but members were unable to vote on it because Controller Chris Hollins, wishing for more time to review the proposal, did not certify the item ahead of the weekly council meeting. Hollins said Wednesday that he decided to greenlight the proposal following a full review of the project.
Houston Finance Director Melissa Dubowski told the council on Wednesday that her team has worked closely with the airport system to examine the deal's financial implications in detail: "It took some time to get there, but we have gone through all those numbers, and we feel comfortable at this point."
Construction is already underway, and the city council will consider another resolution in the coming days to begin the financing process and to capture some of the existing expenses, according to Dubowski.
Brown, now serving as Whitmire's senior adviser for financial integrity, said last year that he would not certify the funding until the airport system produced a new feasibility study for the $624 million of city bond debt required by the deal. Dubowski said Wednesday the city is still in the process of updating the study, and it will be completed before the bond issuance this summer.
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