Kansas City Council will hear KCI planning update on Thursday

The Kansas City Council will hear an important briefing Thursday on the planning for Kansas City International Airport terminal improvements.

The business session starts at 12:30 p.m. in the 10th floor conference room at City Hall, although the aviation discussion follows several other agenda items. The session is also broadcast on Kansas City government channel 2, KCCG-TV2.

The future of KCI has been a hot topic for several years, and this presentation will not answer all the questions or recommend any final decision, city staff said.

But it will provide an update on airport improvement plans, including cost comparisons for building a new single terminal versus renovating the existing airport terminals.

A study group consisting of consultants, airline representatives and aviation staff told the City Council in July that it would be less expensive to build a new single terminal than to undertake major renovations. But that presentation did not give specific cost estimates.

Since then, a 13-member City Council with nine new members was sworn into office on Aug. 1. The council will hear an update with more specific information Thursday. This council will probably make a recommendation, possibly late next year, on a plan for KCI that would then go to city voters for a final decision.

This story was originally published December 9, 2015 at 11:34 AM with the headline "Kansas City Council will hear KCI planning update on Thursday."