The San Antonio City Council approved the creation of a 33-member community advisory committee to offer suggestions on how to use $75 million the San Antonio Spurs are committing to the downtown sports and entertainment district.
The committee's creation was proposed by council members Sukh Kaur of District 1, Teri Castillo of District 5, and Marina Alderete Gavito of District 7 using a “three-signature memo.” It’s a process available to council members who want to bring an issue to the floor for discussion.
But that approval didn’t come without another public disagreement among council members, similar to those that have come up during multiple discussions and votes over the proposed Spurs arena and surrounding district known as “Project Marvel.”
Thursday’s disagreement was between San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones and District 3 Councilwoman Phyllis Viagran, with Viagran saying statements made by Jones were misrepresentations or lies.
Thursday’s argument
Early in the discussion, Jones said a presentation by city staff on the committee’s creation appeared to be outdated.
“It sounds like we may have had an older version that was presented as the term sheet is not executed,” Jones said.
The mayor was referring to a term sheet between the City of San Antonio and Spurs Sports & Entertainment that was considered by council in August 2025. At the time, Jones had pushed to delay the term sheet multiple times before it was approved by council.
Councilwoman Viagran called for a point of order shortly after Jones made the claim.
“The term sheet was executed. It was voted on by the council. The contract has not been decided upon,” Viagran said, triggering an argument between the two.
Jones said it was not finalized. Viagran said Jones’ statements were misrepresentations.
Jones then turned to City Attorney Andy Segovia.
“Andy, please correct the councilwoman,” Jones said.
“Mayor, this is an argument, semantics, only a law school student would appreciate. The term sheet was approved by the city council,” Segovia said. “We can use executed, approved, we can use whatever term we want to use. It was approved by city council.”
Jones thanked Segovia for his answer while adding, “we will vote on the final version.”
Viagran challenged Jones again.
“We will vote on a contract. We will not vote on a term sheet,” Viagran said. “Could we please not lie?”
Jones then repeated “no one’s lying” several times.
District 2 Councilman Jalen McKee-Rodriguez attempted to stop the argument.
“Let’s move on, let’s move on,” he said.
“You’re being more than inaccurate,” Viagran said.
“No ma’am,” Jones replied.
“Yes, you are,” Viagran said.
The disagreement ended after Jones said, “it’s a non-binding term sheet.”
The committee
The $75 million from the Spurs as part of a Community Benefits Agreement is spread out over 30 years. The three-signature memo calls for creating a Community Advisory Committee made up of council appointees with expertise in artistry, labor organizations, small businesses and neighborhood groups.
The committee’s makeup of 33 people would allow each council member to appoint three members.
“The benefit of being able to do 33 members is you get a really wide opportunity to do a wide variety of voices,” District 1 Councilwoman Sukh Kaur said. “Sometimes for some of our committees, if we only have one representative each, we may not be able to truly hear from a general representation of the population.”
District 2 Councilman Jalen McKee-Rodriguez said he was not likely to vote for the committee, but his mind could be changed. He offered two amendments to the ordinance. The first was a requirement for members to sign the city’s ethics code, which passed.
The second would require the three chairs to include members from specific council districts.
“What matters to me is that the districts who are most impacted, which will be districts one, two, and five, have an elevated voice in this discussion,” he said.
The amendment didn’t pass. It failed on a 5-6 vote.
Kaur was one of the no votes along with Viagran, Marc Whyte, Teri Castillo, Alderete Gavito, and Misty Spears.
“I selfishly want to say yes to this because it means that a District One individual gets to be a chair of this,” Kaur said. “But I am also conflicted because I do understand that there might be someone from a different district, District Six or District Four, that wants to be able to step up and be chair and is qualified to do so.”
The council approved the committee in a 10-1 vote. District 2 Councilman Jalen McKee-Rodriguez was the lone dissenter. After the vote, he said he believed engagement like this should have come earlier in the sports and entertainment district discussions.
“In this instance, I feel like the creation of this committee is performative. I don't think it meets the true intent of what the community is asking for, and it doesn't take into account all of the impacts that those who live in and around the district will face,” he said.
Selection for the committee is expected to begin in the coming weeks, with the goal of having it filled by the end of September, Kaur said.
Viagran is scheduled to hold a press conference Friday morning on the steps of City Hall with several council members, business groups and community organizations to discuss the city’s economic development investments, annual operating budget and long-term financial health.
