Government Rules Out Privatizing Ponce's Mercedita Airport, Bets on $18.5 Million in Upgrades

Governor Jenniffer González Colón ruled out this week that her administration is considering privatizing the Mercedita International Airport in Ponce, betting instead on the government keeping control of the facility while completing more than $18 million in physical upgrades to the terminal and taxiway ¹. The governor made the statement on September 22, responding directly to a question about whether her government was weighing handing the airport's management to a private operator, something a group of Ponce business owners has pushed for since 2021 without any legislative measure ever passing ¹.

Background

Mercedita is not a minor airport within the island's system: it handled 324,451 passengers during fiscal year 2024-2025 and is currently served by two commercial airlines, Frontier and JetBlue, in addition to general aviation, corporate, military and public agency operations ³. But the facilities have been flagged as inadequate for years. The governor was blunt describing the situation: "When people go to board a plane, they have to line up outside in the heat. That's almost third-world," she said, comparing the problem to conditions at the Rafael Hernández Airport in Aguadilla ¹.

In January of this year, the government announced a first $2.9 million rehabilitation project that broke ground that same month and aims to be finished before the end of 2026, with an inauguration projected for November or December ²³. That project includes new bathrooms, modernized electrical and air conditioning systems, sidewalks, pedestrian crossings, storm drainage, lighting and signage, along with relocating the Police headquarters, the TSA credential-screening area, and the federal Agriculture inspection checkpoint, plus expanding airline zones and separating arrival and departure passenger areas ¹³.

The numbers

On top of that $2.9 million investment, another $15.6 million is already underway to improve the taxiway and other connection areas, according to Puerto Rico Ports Authority executive director Norberto Negrón Díaz ¹. In April of this year, through Administrative Order 209, the Ports Authority created a 13-member advisory committee to draft a master plan for the airport, with a goal of having it ready by January 2027 ¹. The committee includes Ponce Mayor Marlese Sifre Rodríguez, Peñuelas Mayor Josean González Febres, Villalba Mayor Danny Adriel Santiago Núñez, and representatives from the hospitality, food service, education, health and small-business sectors of the southern region ¹. One additional detail: the military lease agreement at the facility expires in May 2026 and currently generates $8,750 a month for the treasury ³.

What this means for you

If you live in Ponce, Peñuelas, Villalba or any municipality in the southern region, this process literally decides how you'll fly without having to drive all the way to San Juan. Today, as the governor herself acknowledged, reaching Ponce by air almost always means landing at Luis Muñoz Marín and then driving. With the new hotels and convention centers being built in the city, the goal is for Mercedita to handle more direct flights, including possible routes to Boston, Philadelphia and Texas, cities with large Puerto Rican populations ³. It also means that if you travel through Mercedita over the coming months, you'll see active construction: the relocation of TSA, Police and Agriculture areas may temporarily shift access points and lines inside the terminal.

How to do it / Checklist

1. If you're flying through Mercedita between now and December 2026, arrive with an extra 20-30 minutes of buffer time due to possible temporary relocations of areas inside the terminal.
2. Confirm your flight directly with Frontier or JetBlue, the only commercial airlines currently operating at Mercedita ³.
3. If you're a business owner, hotelier, or part of the tourism sector in Ponce, Peñuelas or Villalba and want input into the master plan, contact your municipality's mayor's office, since all three southern-region mayors sit on the advisory committee created by Administrative Order 209 ¹.
4. Follow the Ports Authority's updates on progress of the $15.6 million taxiway project, which is key to the airport eventually handling larger aircraft or more flights ¹.

What comes next

The advisory committee has until January 2027 to deliver a master plan guiding Mercedita's future, and the governor has already signaled her priority is attracting more airlines while, in parallel, drawing more cruise ships to the southern region, in coordination with the Department of Economic Development and Commerce and the Ports Authority ¹. The $2.9 million project is set to be inaugurated between November and December of this year, while the military lease expires in May 2026, which could free up additional space inside the facility ²³. No privatization measure is currently active in the Legislature, but the topic could resurface if the master plan fails to attract the additional airlines Ponce has been requesting for years.

Sources

1. El Vocero de Puerto Rico, "Descartan privatización del Aeropuerto Mercedita," Pedro Menéndez Sanabria, September 22, 2026. https://www.elvocero.com/gobierno/privatizaci-n-del-aeropuerto-mercedita-no-est-en-discusi-n-este-momento/article_6af1ae19-8281-456d-83e1-207d9fdec180.html
2. El Nuevo Día, "Gobierno invertirá $2.9 millones en mejoras al aeropuerto Mercedita en Ponce," Génesis Ibarra Vázquez, January 16, 2026. https://www.elnuevodia.com/noticias/gobierno/notas/gobierno-invertira-29-millones-en-mejoras-al-aeropuerto-mercedita-en-ponce/
3. Primera Hora, "Gobernadora anuncia millonarias mejoras en el Aeropuerto Mercedita de Ponce," Frances Rosario, January 16, 2026. https://www.primerahora.com/noticias/gobierno-politica/notas/gobernadora-anuncia-millonarias-mejoras-en-el-aeropuerto-mercedita-de-ponce/