The Spurs are set to move to a new downtown area after San Antonio-area voters approved a county-level funding measure Tuesday.
Bexar County, Texas, voters passed a $311 million measure that will help fund a $1.3 billion arena at Hemisfair, a downtown location that was the site of the 1968 World’s Fair. Separately, the city of San Antonio will contribute $489 million, with that move not subject to a citizen vote, and the Spurs will pay $500 million, plus all cost overruns. The team also intends to bring in private partners for help with a mixed-use development surrounding the arena.
The long-discussed arena plan will allow the team to depart the 23-year-old Frost Bank Center, which is aging and increasingly does not have amenities offered in modern venues such as California’s Chase Center and Intuit Dome.
“The community has spoken,” Spurs Sports and Entertainment chair Peter J. Holt said after the vote. “We love this city, we love this county, and the county and the city love us back.”
That Bexar County vote, however, was close, with about 52% of voters supporting the measure in the face of significant opposition from a variety of corners. The county funds for the arena will come from hotel and rental car tax receipts, and the decision ends any possibility of the Spurs relocating to another market, such as Austin, where they have a G League team.
The Spurs intend to open their new arena sometime in the early 2030s. The current lease at Frost Bank Center expires in 2032. Once it opens, it will leave the 76ers as the only NBA team not playing in a downtown arena. That team struck a deal early this year with Comcast Spectacor to develop a new facility in the south Philadelphia sports complex to succeed Xfinity Mobile Arena.
The Wemby Factor
The San Antonio facility issue is developing as Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama has started the season in torrid fashion. Wembanyama and Spurs legends such as Manu Ginóbili were part of heavy pro-arena messaging from the team leading up to the vote. The new venue should be ready for what could still very much be the prime of Wembanyama’s career.
“I think about my future—and my present—all the time, in San Antonio, of course,” Wembanyama said about the arena vote. “And recently a little about the arena because it’s been a subject. … For all areas of my career, I’m very intentional. Even though some things take time [and] patience is needed, I’ve never been one to waste time.”
