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The San Antonio City Council voted to give City Manager Erik Walsh the authority to pursue and execute a negotiating framework with Bexar County and the San Antonio Spurs over a new downtown Spurs arena.
The non-binding memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the three parties moved the Spurs one step closer to an estimated $1.5 billion downtown arena.
The council also voted to have the District 1 and District 2 representatives invited to all substantive conversations related to the MOU’s development following concerns that they had not been adequately engaged in a process that could radically reshape their districts.
The drafted MOU also stipulated that the city and Spurs will assist Bexar County in redeveloping the Frost Bank Center — the current home of the Spurs — as well as the Freeman Coliseum and Freeman Coliseum grounds.
Another piece of the draft MOU language assumed that the city would hand over the Willow Springs golf course on the East Side to the county, which District 2 Councilmember Jalen McKee-Rodriguez, whose district it sits in, and several other council members said was a nonstarter.
City Manager Erik Walsh said he took their positions seriously and would take them to the negotiating table.
The city, county, and Spurs have also committed to hold public input sessions about the Spurs arena and what happens to the area around the Frost Bank Center once the MOU is finalized.
Any final agreements with the Spurs or the county will require city council approval.
