A vertiport that allows electric vehicles to take off and land, along with a simulated moon terrain lab, are part of major expansion plans announced on Tuesday by Port San Antonio on the Southwest Side.
Port President and CEO Jim Perschbach outlined the expansion before a packed luncheon at the Port Tech Center + Arena on General Hudnell Drive, organized by the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
He said the expansion will also include a multi-story office building, the first of its kind in the economically-challenged area. Groundbreaking will take place next year.
Perschbach said the facilities will host thousands of additional workers on the future-leaning campus in industries such as aerospace, space-based manufacturing, cybersecurity, energy, robotics, and other applied technologies.
"We're at 15,600 on this campus and I would expect to double that within the next decade," he said.
In addition to the development of electrically-powered aircraft, Perschbach said the port is working on a future where power will be generated in space and transmitted wirelessly back to earth and where robots transform aging industries.
He said beginning this summer, his organization will engage architects, engineers and other development professionals to refine the scope and design of the facilities.
The new structures would be built along General Hudnell Drive, the port's main street.
He also said one of the port's newest tenants, DeLorean Motors Reimagined, has started hiring in what could lead to 400 employees for its headquarters.
"We put them in a small space just for their initial cohort. We're going to buildout a second space for them, but ultimately we got to get a big office building for the hundreds of people they are going to have here," Perschbach said.
The electric DeLoreans with trademark gull-winged doors will be built on a small scale by a contracted Canadian manufacturer.
