<\/p>\n
Renderings show what a mixed-use development proposed next to the San Antonio Museum of Art could look like.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of McCombs Enterprises<\/p>\n
Renderings show what a mixed-use development proposed next to the San Antonio Museum of Art could look like.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of McCombs Enterprises<\/p>\n
Renderings show what a mixed-use development proposed next to the San Antonio Museum of Art could look like.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of McCombs Enterprises<\/p>\n
Renderings show what a mixed-use development proposed next to the San Antonio Museum of Art could look like.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of McCombs Enterprises<\/p>\n
Renderings show what a mixed-use development proposed next to the San Antonio Museum of Art could look like.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of McCombs Enterprises<\/p>\n
Renderings show what a mixed-use development proposed next to the San Antonio Museum of Art could look like.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of McCombs Enterprises<\/p>\n
Renderings show what a mixed-use development proposed next to the San Antonio Museum of Art could look like.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of McCombs Enterprises<\/p>\n
Renderings show what a mixed-use development proposed next to the San Antonio Museum of Art could look like.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of McCombs Enterprises<\/p>\n
Renderings show what a mixed-use development proposed next to the San Antonio Museum of Art could look like.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of McCombs Enterprises<\/p>\n
McCombs Enterprises is razing buildings next to the San Antonio Museum of Art to make way for a mixed-use development.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of McCombs Enterprises<\/p>\n
McCombs Enterprises wants to fill a vacant pocket along the San Antonio River<\/a> between Pearl and the San Antonio Museum of Art primarily with shops, restaurants and offices.<\/p>\n Renderings for the development, which is expected to cost more than $300 million, show walkways, plazas, trees and outdoor seating around low-rise buildings at Jones Avenue and Camden Street and dining overlooking the river.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n It would connect to the Museum Reach section of the River Walk and include parking, Jon\u00a0Wiegand, managing director of real estate for the company, told a City Council committee at a briefing Tuesday. McCombs Enterprises also wants to add a pedestrian bridge, landscaping and seating for live performances in an area underneath the highway that\u2019s currently used for parking.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re sort of the hole in the donut, if you will, to connect this cultural corridor,\u201d Wiegand told the Planning and Community Development Committee.<\/p>\n The company is asking for funding from the Midtown Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone to help pay for infrastructure upgrades at the property.<\/p>\n Property values are essentially frozen at the beginning of a reinvestment zone, and rising tax revenue from new development is used to reimburse companies for public improvements.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The Midtown zone\u2019s coffers have soared because it encompasses Pearl and nearby properties. It’s projected to generate about $500 million for new projects by 2060, which is when it’s set to expire, though the City Council is considering ending it sooner.<\/p>\n McCombs Enterprises wants the city to create a subzone that would encompass only its development and use new tax revenue it would generate for infrastructure improvements, not funds from other projects in the zone, Wiegand said.<\/p>\n It\u2019s unclear exactly how much the company requested. In response to a public records request for its application, an attorney for\u00a0McCombs Enterprises has asked the Texas Attorney General\u2019s Office not to disclose the numbers because an agreement with the city hasn\u2019t been finalized.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Wiegand told City Council members the company wants to use the subzone to cover as much as half of $43.6 million worth of its infrastructure costs for the project, or $22 million.<\/p>\n The first phase of McCombs Enterprises\u2019 project could be leased by 2030, with construction under way on a second phase. The development is projected to generate $159.8 million in new sales tax revenue for the city through 2060, Wiegand said.<\/p>\n Under San Antonio\u2019s tax increment financing policy, developers must designate 25% of housing they build as affordable or contribute 25% of the tax increment to a fund the city uses to subsidize\u00a0such units. McCombs is exploring options for lower-priced housing at other sites, city staff told council members.<\/p>\n City staff haven\u2019t presented a finance plan to City Council or finalized an agreement with McCombs, which would require approval from the Midtown zone\u2019s board and council.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The project has been in the works for several years.<\/p>\n In 2023, the company \u2014 the corporate umbrella for\u00a0the McCombs family\u2019s business activities, including real estate investments\u00a0\u2014 bought the 5.9-acre site from CPS Energy<\/a> for $29.5 million. The city-owned utility had used it as a service center before declaring it surplus property and putting it up for sale.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n