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The legal fight over the University of Texas at San Antonio's attempt to demolish the Institute of Texan Cultures building continued on Thursday, with the university's assertion in a hearing that the State of Texas — UTSA is a state university — has sovereign immunity over the facility.
Therefore, it argued, the court has no say in the matter.
The Conservation Society’s Lewis Vetter, who is helping with the fight to protect the building, said the court declined to rule on that assertion, delaying that until next week.
“We're faced with a situation now — it's a great trick on the part of the lawyers to derail the process of first emergency restraining order and then our injunction that if we are deemed that there's no jurisdiction," he said, "well, we would appeal that. If we are recognized that, yes, there is jurisdiction for our court to hear this, well, they'll appeal that, and that whole appeal process will be delaying anything we can take action on by the Conservation Society."
He added: "Meanwhile, UTSA continues to demolish the Texas Pavilion, so it's a strategy that they're using at this case, on to basically boxes out of being able to get them to stop doing what they are.”
UTSA officials declined TPR's request for comment. Both parties will be back in court on Monday, and crews continue the demolition work.
There are two court dates next week. The one on Monday will determine whether or not the court has standing to rule on the matter, and the one on Tuesday will determine whether or not the Conservation Society’s emergency injunction to stop demolition will be approved.
Vetter said that San Antonio residents who are watching this and wish to do something are not powerless.
“I would suggest that they send letters or communications first to their councilman, because they are part of this effort and have been moving it forward. So let the city know that they object to, one, the fact that it's happening, that they might destroy this building, but also object to the methods that are being used,” Vetter said. “The same could be directed to the president of the university, Taylor Eighmy, to do that and let them know they don't appreciate the rush process for tearing down this historic place.”
The building was first named the Texas Pavilion for the 1968 World’s Fair, and it served as the Institute of Texan Cultures (since 1986, primarily as a museum featuring the diverse ethnicities and cultures of Texas. Its location at the far southeastern corner of downtown — far away from both the Alamo and the River Walk — left it far from the traditional currents of tourists coursing through the area.
But its size and proximity to downtown and I-37 made it a valuable piece of property. Over the last several years, UTSA floated ideas for monetizing the 13+ acres, and eventually a plan to demolish the ITC and build a new arena for the San Antonio Spurs to play — called Project Marvel — took root. The arena would be part of a larger development, encompassing properties on both sides of I-37.
