Brian O'Neil, executive director for the Mesa Gateway Airport, told the Queen Creek Town Council on a discussion-item update that the airport expects continued growth in passengers and private development and outlined several major projects and security upgrades.

"Queen Creek is one of the owners of the airport and really appreciate the support that the airport receives from all of you," O'Neil said in his opening remarks. He said both Allegiant and Sun Country had record years in 2024 and that he was "hopeful and optimistic that this year, for 2025, we will surpass 2,000,000 passengers for the first time in the history of the airport."

The overview highlighted three categories of activity: air service development, private-sector construction and major capital projects. O'Neil said Mesa Gateway currently has more than 1,000,000 square feet of private development in progress, naming several tenants and master-developments by project type and scale. He described an upcoming Virgin Galactic manufacturing facility that will include a roughly 15,000-square-foot manufacturing space and a roughly 50,000-square-foot hangar for a "mothership," and said Virgin Galactic is hiring for production roles.

O'Neil also described Gulfstream Aerospace's West Coast service center, which he said is about 225,000 square feet and can hold up to 13 Gulfstream G700 aircraft. He said Gulfstream currently employs about 350 people at the facility and is planning growth over several years. He said other projects include an aeronautical redevelopment site being negotiated with a consortium called Amplifly, boutique industrial buildings at Gateway Commerce Park 3 and the Skybridge Arizona 360-acre master development.

On airport infrastructure, O'Neil described a two-year, $45,000,000 reconstruction of the inside runway (Runway 12/30 left). He said crews removed older concrete and used pulverized material for the new base, then poured 16 inches of new concrete across a 50-foot width for the runway's new surface. "It's a significant undertaking," he said, adding the work should be complete in fall 2026.

O'Neil also outlined a TSA partnership to modernize checked-baggage explosive-detection screening. He said the plan calls for new L3 machines capable of processing substantially more bags per hour (roughly 800–1,000 bags per machine per hour) and for the airport to build an expanded facility to house the equipment. "The TSA is putting in $20,000,000 worth of equipment; we're putting in $10,000,000 to build a new facility to house the equipment," O'Neil said, adding the project was advanced to begin in August 2025.

Council members pressed O'Neil for local impacts. "Any idea between Virgin Galactic and Boeing and Zenergy and Gulfstream, how many construction jobs?" Council member Brown asked. O'Neil said he did not have an exact daily construction-worker count but estimated the airport already supported about 3,000 existing jobs and that with new projects and buildings coming online the total would exceed 4,000 jobs; he listed Gulfstream (about 350 now, with a multiyear increase planned), Zenergy (about 700 in phase 1) and Virgin Galactic (about 125) as examples. He added that approximately 1,000 permanent jobs would come from projects currently under construction.

Council member McClure asked about runway maintenance sequencing; O'Neil said the airport's 10-year master plan prioritizes airfield connectivity and that the middle runway was reconstructed recently, the inside runway is under work now and the outside runway was done a few years ago.

O'Neil described longer-term planning work called "Gateway Tomorrow," a stakeholder charrette that produced a conceptual East Side terminal plan with structured parking, ground-transportation facilities and up to 25 gates in a full build-out. He said phase 1 of a new East Side build-out could cost roughly $1 billion, with a rolling 10-year horizon for planning and financing tied to lease absorption rates, long-term lease revenue and airport bonds.

Mayor Wheatley and other council members praised the economic and travel benefits of Mesa Gateway, noting convenience to East Valley residents and expected regional job impacts. O'Neil said the airport receives annual member contributions from owners including Queen Creek (about $130,000 per year) that are used as local match for federal infrastructure grants; he also said the airport funds its operations from user and tenant charges.

The update was for discussion only; there was no council vote on airport projects at the meeting.