In a move that marks a shift in the city's handling of migrants, San Antonio is scaling back its assistance at the international airport and shutting down a key transfer center. According to the San Antonio Report, the decision came after a notable dip in the number of asylum seekers requiring help.
Providing details to the City Council in a memo, City Manager Erik Walsh cited a "77 percent decrease in asylum seekers" between December 2023 and March 2024 as the primary reason for the closure. While the city had recently received nearly $18 million in federal funding for migrant aid, the funds are evidently being stretched thin as needs evolve and the number of incoming migrants wanes.
Operations at the airport's transfer center will shift to the Migrant Resource Center (MRC) on San Pedro Avenue starting May 1, as explained by Walsh in the memo. As a result, the airport will witness a reduction in the city's current welcoming and navigation aid for non-English-speaking migrants, which had been vital in helping them interact with the airport environment and staff.
Some city council members were caught off guard by the use of a city-owned airport building to temporarily hold migrants, as highlighted in a KSAT report. Councilman Marc Whyte voiced his concern, discovering "individually" that migrants were staying there for more than the intended less than 24-hour period. Moreover, he flagged the unrestricted movement of migrants as a "public safety nightmare."
The controversy stirred when the Daily Mail reported on what it called a "secret migrant camp" at the airport. However, Walsh denied the secrecy claims, asserting, "I don’t think it was a big secret" in a statement obtained by KSAT. He further stressed the ATC was simply a "transit spot," despite some council members' unfamiliarity with the beginning of the program.
Walsh has maintained that the city will continue facilitating migrant travel using federal dollars, even as local facilities like the ATC and MRC become increasingly pressured by their occupancy limits and the need to prioritize local resources.
