In a decisive move toward regional growth, the City Council endorsed the future of air travel for Las Cruces, giving a green light to the Las Cruces International Airport Master Plan. During the Monday session held on April 21, the council ratified both the Master Plan and Layout Plan, embarking on a trajectory set to reposition the airport as a bustling node of economic activity for the area.
According to the City of Las Cruces, Andy Hume, helming the position of Director at Las Cruces International Airport, spent a meticulous three-year span charting the airport's future. The FAA-sanctioned planning procedure, which was doggedly pursued by Hume and his team, centers around two approved components: a projection of aviation activities and the airport's spatial blueprint.
Marking a milestone in the airport’s expansion, the FAA has greenlit interstate passenger air services for Las Cruces, with early hints pointing toward Phoenix, Arizona, as the first out-of-state destination. “For the first time ever in the airport’s forecast, Las Cruces International received approval for interstate passenger air service,” Hume said, as obtained by the City of Las Cruces. However, the exact timing of the inaugural interstate flight remains up in the air.
Alongside the envisioned passenger routes, the Master Plan stakes a claim on regional economic significance, pledging support to the nearby Las Cruces Innovation and Industrial Park and eyeing future funding injections. In the recently adjourned 2025 legislative session, Hume shared that the airport has pocketed $2 million earmarked for infrastructure updates.
Shifting focus from airfield layouts to urban aesthetics, the Council also nodded through agreements for three firms to undertake Landscape Architectural Design Services. These deals, detailed by the City of Las Cruces, cap the spending at $2 million per partner annually. The contracted work is slated to spread across public interests, ranging from neighborhood parks to trails and other green spaces that demand design finesse.
