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Bexar County commissioners on Tuesday voted to move forward with plans for a $197 million makeover of the Freeman Coliseum Grounds with a proposed move by the Spurs to a new downtown arena in the works.
Commissioners want to keep those grounds an economic driver for the East Side, and the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo would be its sole remaining tenant to help get that started.
Commissioners directed County Manager David Smith to prepare a resolution for their consideration based on the proposed makeover presented to them on Tuesday by San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo CEO Cody Davenport and Derrick Howard, the county's executive director of community arenas.
Their conceptual plans would be funded by a county venue tax that could raise as much as $450 million that voters could consider this November.
The plans call for building modifications, demolition of some buildings, and some new building construction to create spaces to attract year around rodeo competitions from across the country and attract other gatherings such as large-scale entertainment, like Jurassic Quest's life-sized imitation dinosaurs, trade shows, conventions, banquets, car and RV shows, and sporting events.
The conceptual plans were included in this document, starting on Page 13.
They placed the annual economic impact of the makeover of the grounds for those sorts of events at $367 million. The stock show and rodeo held every year on the grounds by itself pumps $330 million into the local economy.
County Precinct 4 Commissioner Tommy Calvert, who represents the coliseum area, expressed disappointment the conceptual plans did not incorporate more community input, some of which grew out of town hall meetings he hosted this year.
County Judge Peter Sakai, empowered by the commissioners court to act as the sole negotiator with stock show and rodeo officials on the redevelopment, defended the conceptual plans, reminding his colleagues revenue from a venue tax statutorily must be spent on the venue and not on other community wants.
"I can't spend it on all the things the community feels that we need, and I would agree with them," he said. "We need housing, small businesses, ensure that contracts go to our local community, especially those in the underserved community."
Sakai called the presentation a "helluva deal," and he pushed back on claims by Calvert and Precinct 3 Commissioner Grant Moody that they did not have adequate details before Tuesday's vote.
While voting to move forward with the makeover, Calvert stuck to his argument.
"We got to put more community in that venue," he said. "A lot more. Because we haven't done it over the last 25 years in the ways that we can." he said. "And I think I was specific in outlining some of those: restaurants, breweries, construction, workforce."
The head of community arenas told Calvert there was public input taken into consideration.
Calvert said the makeover should include architecture with better aesthetics to attract non-rodeo or stock show gatherings. Many of the buildings on the grounds now appear as simple, giant metal structures.
The brick architecture of the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo grounds was raised as one example during the court discussions.
