The City of San Antonio (COSA) intends to move forward with $3.5 billion Project Marvel, the initiative to build a Sports and Entertainment District around downtown San Antonio’s Hemisfair Park. On Aug. 5, Bexar County Commissioners Court added an item to the 2025 ballot to give San Antonians a chance to vote on whether venue tax dollars should be raised to fund the initiative this November. The project has been in development since June 2023, according to an open records request filed by KSAT12.
The project includes, as stated by city documents:
- A brand new $1.3 billion San Antonio Spurs sports arena
- Expansion of the Henry B. González Convention Center
- Renovation of the Alamodome
- Development of retail housing, hotels and offices.
The funding for this project will come from three sources. COSA will contribute either 38% of the arena’s cost or $489 million, whichever is less. The San Antonio Spurs, providing at least $500 million, pledged to cover any cost overruns and $75 million in “community incentives,” defined in city documents as investments in local small businesses, youth sports, health programming and other efforts aligned with the Spurs’ charitable mission. Lastly, Bexar County intends to provide 25% of the arena’s cost up to a $311 million cap.
On Aug. 21, San Antonio City Council ignored Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones’ Aug. 7 request for a “strategic pause” on negotiating Project Marvel, voting 4–7 in favor of approving a term sheet, a preliminary agreement, with the Spurs for a new arena. Though this term sheet is non-binding, Jones proposed a delay in approving the term sheet until further research can be done.
“The only data we have regarding the economic impact of a new Spurs arena is a study funded by the Spurs,” Jones wrote in a statement on Aug. 7. “The people of San Antonio deserve an independent, detailed economic analysis to be presented to the City Council that clearly outlines the direct and indirect costs, as well as opportunity costs associated with a new Spurs arena.” The cited analysis comes from David Stone, an economic consultant engaged by the San Antonio Spurs.
The San Antonio City Council has stated on multiple occasions that funding for this new arena should not be the burden of taxpayers. Instead, money will come from existing venue and visitor taxes — a proposed raise to 2% hotel occupancy tax and a 5% short-term car rental tax — first established in 1999 to support the Spurs’ Frost Bank Center and adjusted in 2008 to support other Bexar County Community venues. If voters approve increasing those taxes to 2% on hotel rooms, the measures would generate $503 million in revenue over 30 years. The Nov. 4 ballot will ask if voters are comfortable with using up to $311 million to help fund the new arena and using the remainder on upgrading other county facilities, such as the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo Grounds.
The project has drawn both support and criticism across the city. Groups such as the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center, Domesicas Unidas and others in San Antonio have banded together to form the “No! Project Marvel” Coalition. In addition, other organizations held a rally in downtown San Antonio to voice their opposition to the cause this Monday.
Nonetheless, the public is still split, according to a February UTSA poll, which indicates that 41% of respondents are in favor of Project Marvel, 36% are against and 20% are still undecided.
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