SAN ANTONIO – When the Toyota plant came to San Antonio 20 years ago, it occupied unused ranch land.
“Up the street, you just see neighborhoods that are going in.” Toyota Texas President Kevin Voelkel said. “There was nothing but scrub brush that now are high-end homes, and other businesses are coming of restaurants to support those,”
The car talk was short at Toyota’s 20th anniversary celebration on Wednesday. The focus was on the community impact over the past two decades.
“This is a campus of 9,400 people that have high-wage jobs. Some of those over six figures that allow this economic mobility to provide for their families and automobiles and houses,” Voelkel said.
The plant is in Councilwoman Dr. Adriana Rocha Garcia’s District 4 and has bolstered all of its surrounding school districts.
“From giving literary tracks so that the kids could work on the path to investing in robotics programs to just closing the digital divide,” Rocha Garcia said.
Toyota has also given over $50 million to nonprofits.
Toyota has funded thousands of dollars in grants to Texas A&M-San Antonio, which sits next door to the plant. The money has gone to the Institute for School and Community Partnerships, which helps increase STEM education in local ISDs.
At the event, Toyota presented another $50,000 to Texas A&M-San Antonio.
They also gave the same amount to the 100 Club, which supports law enforcement, firefighters and their families. The grant will be used for training, equipment and survivor support for the First Responder Fund.
Given the impact so far, leaders, organizations, schools and community members alike hope to see the plant prosper for another 20 years to come.