San Antonio is moving ahead with plans for a new downtown arena that would anchor Project Marvel, a $1.3 billion redevelopment project centered around the Spurs professional basketball team.
The proposed venue, seating between 17,000 to 18,500, is the centerpiece of a broader redevelopment that includes expanding the Henry B. González Convention Center, building a new hotel tower, adding mixed-use development and renovating the Frost Bank Center and Alamodome.
The city council first floated the idea in November 2024 and last week gave 7-4 approval to a nonbinding term sheet to authorize $489 million in city funding. The city has put about $3.5 million from its Capital and Redemption Fund toward consultant studies, including master planning, feasibility, revenue forecasting, cost estimation, as well as infrastructure and traffic analysis.
Under the term sheet, funding would come from three sources:
- The city of San Antonio: $489 million.
- Spurs Sports & Entertainment (SS&E): $500 million, including cost overruns.
- Bexar County: $311 million from a voter-approved venue tax.
The city’s contribution would be financed by bonds backed by arena lease income, ground-lease revenue, new property tax from the Hemisfair TIRZ and hotel tax revenues diverted through a Project Finance Zone. The Spurs would contribute $500 million toward the project and cover any necessary overruns. Bexar County voters will decide Nov. 4 on whether to approve that venue tax.
Once built, the city would own the arena and lease it to SS&E for about $4 million per year. The Spurs would retain all naming and sponsorship rights and be responsible for operating and maintaining it at an estimated cost of about $25 million a year. The deal includes a 30-year non-relocation agreement, with allowances for some away or neutral-site games each season.
The Spurs have also committed to lead $1.4 billion in development over 12 years across 18 acres surrounding the arena, and to provide $75 million in community benefits, plus a $30 million parcel of land near the new arena.
Despite the backing, the project is not unanimously supported. Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones and three other council members voted against the plan, instead calling for a “strategic pause” for independent economic review. Critics have raised concern over the possibility of bias in earlier economic analyses. The mayor is pressing for an independent analysis and more public engagement before moving forward.
Community feedback has been mixed. Multiple listening sessions across districts revealed cautious optimism but also concerns. East Side groups are calling for equitable infrastructure investment with more inclusion into the Project Marvel benefits. If Bexar County voters approve the venue-tax measures on Nov. 4, city officials could proceed with a 2026 bond election to fund district-wide infrastructure, possibly rolling the city’s public share into that. If the vote fails, the county portion disappears, putting the deal in peril. Without the county’s support, the Spurs would need to pause negotiations and rethink the plan forward.
Construction is currently planned in time for the 2032 NBA season.
Rendering courtesy San Antonio Sports & Entertainment
